


RWBY: Welcome to Pleasantville

by The_Dark_Watcher



Category: RWBY
Genre: Domestication, F/M, Femsub, Maledom, Marriage, Mind Control, Mind Manipulation, Pregnancy, Stepford Wife, housewife, stepford, stepfordization
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-04
Updated: 2020-11-08
Packaged: 2021-03-04 18:00:31
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 22,605
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25060522
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Dark_Watcher/pseuds/The_Dark_Watcher
Summary: After no word is heard from it in some time, Team RWBY are sent to investigate the mysterious town of Pleasantville. What they find is a wonderful town of beautiful women devoted to their strong husbands. And after spending a little time there themselves, it isn't long before the four huntresses begin to feel hot under the collar for some of the single men in town...
Comments: 46
Kudos: 72





	1. Arrival

The world of Remnant was a truly frightening place.

If one wasn’t a Huntsman or Huntress then life could be nasty, brutal, and short. There were very few places that were safe for humans to live. There were the great cities in the kingdoms of Vale, Atlas, Mistral and Vacuo, and the isolated island of Menagerie. But outside of those cities few places could be considered safe. The creatures of Grimm were always ready to pounce and destroy all human life it could find. Attracted by negative emotions, they could easily overwhelm an unprepared town or village. To make matters worse, roaming bands of bandits dotted the land, often preying on the small human settlements the Grimm didn’t destroy themselves.

Therefore, while many villages and towns outside the Kingdoms direct control prefer their independence, the vast majority keep lines of communication open for trade and security. This way Huntsman and Huntresses can be called for as soon as possible, whether it be to beef up security during Grimm attacks… or to investigate when a settlement becomes too quiet. It was a sad thing to say, but settlements go dark so often nowadays that even students were drafted to search for survivors. Every student team can claim to have done at least one of these missions, and now it was team RWBY’s turn… but they would be in for a surprise.

*

It was the beginning of their second year at Beacon Academy, and Team RWBY were having the time of their lives. After performing well at the Vytal festival - which went off without a hitch - the group of Huntresses in training were feeling on top of the world. Over their first year at Beacon, they had made new friends, faced down inner demons, fought hordes of Grimm, and forged a bond of true friendship as a team.

But while the life of a Huntress had incredible highs, there were just as many lows, and a Survivor’s Search mission was one of them. Despite the fact that it was their first unsupervised mission, the girls were a little sombre.

The team had just been deposited by airship to the closest location it could reach to their destination. The village that had gone quiet, ‘Pleasantville’, was deep in the wild forests on Vale’s easternmost border. No airship could get close and trader caravans to and from the village had always been scarce. Honestly it was no wonder that it eventually vanished from the grid.

As they trudged through the deep forest, keeping a wary out for Grimm, it was Yang, determined to lighten the mood, who broke the silence. “I should have brought my Bumblebee.”

Weiss, doing her best not to think about what the forest dirt was doing to her high-heels, raised an eyebrow. “And how do you propose we could have all ridden on that bike of yours?”

Yang ran a hand through her golden mane of hair. “Well… Ruby could have ridden in a side-car, Blake could squeeze behind me and hold on tight,” that remark earned an eyeroll from the cat Faunus in question, “and you my dear ice queen could be dragged behind us on a rope.”

Of course, as usual Yang’s joke fell flat and Weiss was about to unleash a blistering retort when their team leader Ruby stepped in to calm things down. “Hey there’s no need to start arguing now. This an important mission and we should be keeping our eyes peeled, not sniping at each other.”

“Humph. Very well, but your sister can be such a lout sometimes.”

The blonde brawler laughed. “Hey no need to be so sensitive! It was just a joke, Weiss-cream. Besides, we’d give you some roller skates first before we hooked you to the back of the bike.”

The imaginary though of Weiss skidding along on roller skates while hanging for dear life on a rope hooked up to Bumblebee was enough to make Ruby giggle despite herself.

Weiss moaned. “Oh, not you too!”

Blake, the only member of the team to remain professional during the team’s regular hijinks, held up a hand for silence, the cat ears hidden in her bow twitching. “Quiet. I hear something!” She crouches into a battle stance and drew her weapon, Gambol Shroud. To their credit, the rest of Team RWBY were quick to act, drawing their own weapons.

As one, the team trained their weapons in the direction the rustling noise coming from the forest. Each Huntress was prepared to unleash a salvo of dust-empowered fury on the Grimm they expected to rush out a them. Thankfully, instead of a horrible monster bent on death and destruction, a man stepped out from between the trees and into the forest path.

He was a tall and muscular man, dwarfing the girls in size, with wide shoulders, a lantern jaw and a thick mop of dark hair above sky-blue eyes. He was dressed in a button-up shirt with the sleeved rolled up to the elbows, sensible jeans and black working boots. Upon seeing the four Huntresses, he smiled bemusedly and slowly raised his hands in surrender.

“I don’t know whether I’m lucky or not.” Said the stranger in a deep voice, “Lucky that I’ve encountered such beautiful women, or unlucky that they’re all brandishing such fearsome weapons at me.”

With only a little embarrassment, Team RWBY lowered their weapons. Ruby spoke up first. “Who are you? Are you a survivor of Pleasantville?”

The man looked puzzled. “To answer you first question, the name’s Abel Alderwood. As for your second… survivor? Pleasantville is as safe as houses. We haven’t had a Grimm attack in a long, long time.”

Weiss put away her rapier and put her hands on her hips. “Then can you explain what you’re doing in the woods and why Pleasantville hasn’t sent out a communication in weeks?”

The newly named Abel shrugged. “I’m a carpenter. I was cutting down some trees for material myself, as it’s cheaper to do it that way. My axe is just behind me, I put it down so you girls wouldn’t blast me if you saw a weapon in my hand. As for the communications? We’d finally reached a point where we were pretty much self-sufficient. So we just didn’t have any need to contact anyone on the outside.”

The girls exchanged a meaningful glace among one another. Yang piped up this time. “That doesn’t make sense. Even if you think you don’t need any help, you should still tell people that you want to be left alone, not just cut yourself off.”

Abel frowned. “We’re private people. We keep to ourselves and we like it that way,” His expression softened, “We aren’t trying to be rude though. Judging from what you’ve just said we’ve put at least four lovely young ladies out of their way looking for us.”

He sketched a short bow. “Well while we prefer our own company, we give all visitors a warm welcome. Tell you what, since you travelled all the way from the Kingdom, why don’t I escort you to town? Show you that everything is all right.”

Blake threw in her two cents. “Well, we did come all this way.”

*

With Abel as a guide, it didn’t take long for the girls to reach Pleasantville. Being so deep in the forest and away from the cities, Team RWBY expected some frontier village made of logs with low technology. Instead they were led to a large town, a little bigger than Beacon Academy, surrounded on all sides by a high stone wall.

The girls were still staring when Abel led them through the front gate. And if they were impressed by the wall, then the town proper really raised their eyebrows. It was like a suburban paradise straight out of a picture book. There were dozens upon dozens of suburban stone houses, all complete with perfectly manicured gardens and white picket fences. Children played in the street happily without a care in the world, all the while watched over indulgently by supervising adults.

While one or two men could be seen going about their business, all of them sporting a similar muscular build to Abel, the vast majority of the people team RWBY could see were women. Every single one of them were beautiful in one way or another, wearing tight but otherwise conservative dresses. Some were sat on benches, holding onto prams or nursing pregnant bellies. Others were going about business of their own, kneeling in the gardens planting flowers or pruning plants, while keeping an eye on their children. Or baking in the house while watching out of open windows. All of them had beatific smiles on their faces as they watched the children at play.

Any further observation was put aside for now when the girls heard feminine cry of excitement. A woman rushed up to the team’s burly guide and embraced him lovingly. “Abel, dear you’re home!”

Hugging Abel for dear life was a gorgeous woman with long ashen-black hair, bright amber eyes, and a dazzling smile. She was wearing a red dress, with a skirt cut just below the knee. The upper dress clung tightly to her fit and curvy body… and also emphasised her large bust as well as the swell of her stomach showing off the early stages of pregnancy. High heels adorned her stockinged feet, and judging by how quickly she ran up to Abel, she was used to wearing them. But even with heels, the young woman only came up to the tall man’s chest, forcing her to look upwards at him, adoringly.

“Cindy! This is a wonderful surprise.” Abel, clearly thrilled, scooped the smaller woman off her feet into a bridal carry and spun her around joyfully. Suddenly, as if remembering the obvious baby bump, he placed her gently back onto her feet.

He turned to the huntresses in training. “Ladies, I would like to introduce you to Cindy Alderwood. My wife and in my opinion the prettiest girl in Pleasantville.”

The woman, who in another life Team RWBY would have known as the villainous Cinder Fall, blushed like a schoolgirl at her husband’s compliments. “Oh dear, you always know the perfect thing to say.”

Still facing the girls, Abel patted Cindy on the head affectionately, who preened at the attention.

“Hey, since you travelled all the way here, why don’t you spend the night? We have plenty of room at our home, since our first little one isn’t born yet. You can meet the Mayor in the morning too, so he can write up a letter or something to your Headmaster so he doesn’t worry about us anymore.”

The huntresses glanced at each other again, a little uncertainly. They had only been in the town for a few minutes, but all of them felt uneasy about how… perfect everything was. Especially considering it was essentially in the middle of nowhere. Not even in Vale’s capital city were things so ordered. This slice of ‘paradise’ in a place that should be swarming with Grimm was incongruous, unsettling.

However, it was also true that the girls were tired. And if they stayed the night here, they might learn more about how this place was so well protected from the Grimm.

Eventually as team leader Ruby spoke up. “Well like Blake said we’ve come a long way, and it’d take hours to walk back out of the forest. So, if you really don’t mind, we’d be honoured.”

Cindy beamed. “Oh, it’s no trouble at all! We haven’t entertained in ages. I’ll have to learn to cook for more than two soon anyway.”

*

Abel and Cindy’s home was just like every other house in the town. It was a beautifully crafted suburban townhouse with red brick facing and the ever-present white picket fence surrounding a perfectly manicured garden. And when escorted inside, the girls found the place to be just as clean and tidy as the rest of the town appeared to be.

It was strange. As soon as the girls walked into the house, their growing sense of unease at how utterly impossible this suburban paradise existed in what should have been a Grimm infested forest seemed to abate. The house, no this _home_ had an aura about it, an atmosphere that wouldn’t brook unhappy thoughts. Slowly, almost unconsciously, Team RWBY began to relax, they untensed from their battle-ready mindset.

Carefully taking off her heels and placing them in the shoebox, Cindy motioned the four huntresses to follow her in. “Abel will set you up with some beds upstairs, so take off those shoes and relax a little. I’ll have snacks put out in the sitting room shortly, unless you want to explore our home a little first. Or even better yet, you could join me in the kitchen for some _real_ fun.”

Weiss spoke up first. “I think we’ve been on our feet quite enough today. I will relax a little in your sitting room if you don’t mind.”

Wearily, Blake nodded her agreement. They _had_ been walking all day, and a close observer would be able to see her Faunus cat ears drooping from behind her black bow.

Yang had other ideas. “Well we might be guests but I don’t want to put you out too much. I’ll go upstairs and help Abel set up the beds. It’ll be done faster with two people.”

The housewife looked at Yang like she had grown a second head. “Well… I don’t know why you would want to get involved with Man’s work when you could help out in the kitchen instead. But you _are_ the guest, and an Out-of-Towner, so I’m sure Abel wouldn’t mind a second pair of hands.”

Cindy’s comments about ‘Man’s Work’ caused Yang’s hackles to rise, but the peaceable atmosphere of the house kept her from dressing the housewife down for her backwards thinking. This town obviously had their own virtues, and yelling at the friendly woman wouldn’t help anything. Instead she merely nodded and went up the wooden staircase to help Abel.

With Yang upstairs and Blake and Weiss in the sitting room, this left Ruby – alone – with the former Cinder Fall. The housewife looked at Ruby expectantly. While Cindy tried to hide it, Ruby could tell that she was clearly disappointed that her teammates hadn’t wanted to help with the cooking. Ruby never liked disappointing people.

“Hey, I don’t mind helping out a little.”

The warmth in Cindy’s eyes was enough to convince Ruby that she had said the right thing.

As soon as they reached the kitchen, the barefoot and pregnant housewife gave Ruby a look of pure excitement. “Oh thank you for agreeing to help me despite being a guest. Cooking dinner for four extra people was going to be a challenge with just little ol’ me.”

Ruby smiled back at Cindy’s enthusiasm. “It’s no problem. We’re the ones imposing on you after all. Besides I used to bake cookies all the time back at Beacon, how different could this be?”

“Well we’ll see what you know,” said Cindy as she put a sunflower-yellow apron over her dress, handing a frilly white apron to Ruby, “I’ll help you every step of the way. We can even make cookies for dessert today. Abel would be thrilled I’m sure!”

Soon the housewife and the huntress got to work. Despite Ruby’s experience in baking, it was clear she was a novice at preparing and cooking food. Cindy was always close at hand, patiently explaining and demonstrating anything Ruby needed to know. As they worked, they got to talking.

“So, Cindy have you always lived in Pleasantville?”

Continuing to chop up vegetables, Cindy answered. “Oh, good gracious no. Just like you I came across this place while I was travelling with my friends Mercury and Emerald. I met Abel shortly after arriving and I was just head over heels.”

Watching carefully how Cindy was chopping the vegetables and doing her best to imitate her, Ruby kept talking. “Travelling huh? What were you doing before you came here, and what happened to your friends?”

Upon asking that question, a flicker of uncertainty flashed across Cindy’s face, before she resumed her normal happy expression. “Before…? I don’t like thinking about before Pleasantville. I wasn’t a very nice person; I was positively _mean_. A mean little girl who wanted to feel powerful. I wasn’t even able to cook! Thankfully all that changed when I met Abel. So strong, so manly… the bad girl I was just couldn’t resist melting into his arms.”

Cindy rubbed her belly lovingly. “Luckily for me, Abel fell for me just as much as I fell for him. He made me the happiest girl in the world when he took me as his bride. Now I’m having his baby, the first of many, I hope! And I’ll love them all.”

She seemed to come back to herself. “Oh, and Mercury and Emerald? They’ve settled down too. After a little while in Pleasantville they realised they were perfect for each other and got married. I was even Emerald’s Maid of Honour! They live down the street a few doors away, I’ll introduce you to them tomorrow morning if you’d like.”

Ruby had the strong impression that something was missing from Cindy’s story, but couldn’t figure out what it was. Every time she tried to think about it, her suspicions became fuzzy in her mind. She tried to focus, and that only caused the beginnings a migraine to form. Only when Ruby resumed preparing vegetables did it go away, and a sense of peace washed over her instead.

Cindy continued talking, oblivious to Ruby’s mental struggle. “I’m going to get the chicken out of the fridge and wash it, which can be a little icky. You’ve been so helpful with the vegetables that I was able to prepare a cheese and cracker platter for your friends. Could you be a dear and take it to the front room?”

“Sure thing!”

Ruby couldn’t understand why, but she felt a bloom of happiness rise in her chest as she took the platter to her friends. For just a moment, she daydreamed that this lovely house was _her_ home. That _she_ was the perfect homemaker just like Cindy was. Entertaining her guests before her husband came home from work…

She shook her head rapidly, clearing her thoughts. What was going on with her?

*

Even the high-class daughter of the Schnee family could admit that the Alderwood’s front room was gorgeously decorated. With finely polished and crafted hand-made wooden furniture such as bookcases, mantle pieces and a coffee table. Not to mention the royal blue carpeting, a perfectly tended fireplace, and what had to be the _most_ comfortable chairs in the world.

It was strange. Weiss knew she was tired, but as soon as she sat down in one of the front room’s plush chairs, she had to fight to keep her eyes open. It would be rude to just fall asleep after all, so both she and Blake fought off their respective drowsiness. They kept themselves awake by chatting with one another, and of course the topic of conversation drifted quite naturally to the room they were sitting in.

“It’s so clean. My family manor had a literal army of servants, but even then, I don’t think we had a room quite as clean as this one.”

Blake nodded along, staring at the book case in the corner of the room. “Interesting book collection though. About half of it is pretty serious reading. The other half though… romance novels, cookbooks, housekeeping guides, arts and crafts, fashion magazines, and parenting guides. Also, well… almost a whole shelf is devoted to ‘marital relations’ and ‘husband pleasing’ guides. Looks like Cindy is pretty devoted to Abel.”

That comment brought Weiss up short. Devotion. From what little she’s seen so far Abel and Cindy were a lovey-dovey couple; nothing like her own parents. While it may not have been that way in the beginning – maybe – her mother and father despise each other now. Weiss couldn’t help but wonder what it would have been like if her parents were like the families she had seen in Pleasantville so far. Maybe it was the warm domestic atmosphere of the house, but Weiss couldn’t stop herself from fantasising about it. Jacques Schnee coming home from a long day working as the head of the company, along with Whitley as he was showing him the ropes. Mom, Winter and her working in the kitchen together, as mothers and daughters should, making the perfect dinner for his return. He greets mom with a smile and a kiss, something she’d never seen him do. Then they’d all eat dinner together like a happy family…

She was shaken out of her daydreaming by Blake patting her on the shoulder. Her teammate was watching her with a wary expression. “Are you okay, Weiss? You completely spaced out there. What were you thinking about?”

Weiss fought down a blush of embarrassment. Why was she thinking like this? “I-It’s nothing. Just thinking about my parents.”

“Oh.” Blake was quiet at that; Weiss already knew what the cat Faunus thought her father.

Before things could get awkward, Ruby came into the room, carrying a platter of cheese and crackers. “Hey guys! Here’s the snacks, as promised!”

Weiss and Blake couldn’t help but stare. Without her low-heeled boots, Ruby was even shorter than usual (though Weiss was having the same problem). If you included her carrying that snack platter and wearing that frilly white apron over her usual huntress dress, their team leader looked like a cute little housewife in training.

Ruby carefully placed the platter down on the coffee table. But rather than perch herself on one of the other chairs in the room, she started fidgeting, glancing at the door.

Weiss raised an eyebrow. “Are we not good company anymore Ruby?”

The sheepish look on Ruby’s face was almost enough for Weiss to feel bad about calling her friend out. “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to be rude but… I didn’t expect cooking with Cindy to be so much fun. And I feel bad about leaving her to cook everything on her own.”

Blake shrugged. “If you’re having fun, we’re not going to get in the way of it. Don’t feel the need to stay on our account. We’ll talk more at dinner.”

After a hasty but heartfelt thanks, Ruby was out the door, leaving Weiss and Blake alone with the snacks. Giving each other a meaningful look, the two selected some cheese and crackers and nibbled at them. Almost immediately the heiress and the Faunus moaned in culinary pleasure at the taste. It was just so _good_.

A thought arose in the back of their heads unbidden. How could they learn to make food this good?

*

Ruby rushed into the kitchen with as much speed as she could without using her Semblance. However even as fast as Ruby was, she was still too late to watch Cindy prepare the chicken. The housewife was already putting the washed and seasoned chicken into the oven to roast. What was surprising to the huntress-in-training was just how _disappointed_ she felt that she’d missed it. She was having fun in the kitchen with Cindy, but she didn’t expect to feel so… crushed. Maybe she enjoyed cooking more than she thought.

As soon as the bird was in the oven, the pregnant housewife spun around and saw Ruby in the kitchen, her face making an ‘o’ of surprise. “You didn’t have to rush back so quickly. You could have enjoyed yourself with your friends.”

Bashfully, Ruby replied. “Well… I really wanted to see how you prepared the roast.”

Brushing a lock of her long dark hair out of her eyes, Cindy pouted. “Aww, I didn’t realise it was that important to you.” She took Ruby’s hands in hers. “I know what’ll cheer you up. Let’s make some cookie dough together! If we make it now it’ll be perfect for when we bake it later.”

The sheer delight at the thought of baking with Cindy brought a big smile to Ruby’s face.

*

Upstairs, Yang quickly found Abel in a large open-plan room. Compared to the lovingly decorated first floor, and even the other rooms on the second floor that she had seen like the spare room just opposite, this room was pretty bare, with unpainted walls and wooden floorboards. However, it _stuffed_ with wooden furniture and carvings of all kinds. As soon as she entered the room a floorboard squeaked underneath her, and he quickly and turned around to face her.

“Oh, hello there. Does Cindy need my help with something?”

The man’s first thought was that his wife needed his help, interesting. “Uh, nope. I came to see if you needed any help moving the beds for us?”

For a moment Abel had the same puzzlement across his face that Cindy did, but it quickly morphed into a neutral expression. “You want to help? Are you sure?”

The faintest tone of amusement in his voice set Yang’s teeth on edge. Apparently, the very idea of a woman helping a man with heavy lifting was seen as absurd around here. It was a lovely town, but they had some backwards ideas. Abel saw her as a weak little girl, just like his wife, she was determined to prove him wrong.

“Yeah, I want to help. Is that a problem?”

Abel stroked his chin in thought. “Well, I don’t see why not. But if you begin to feel tired or strained in any way stop and tell me, okay?”

Like that would happen, it was more likely _he_ would be the one tired by the end of this. “Sure, no problem, where do we start?”

The man of the house gestured behind himself with his thumb. “As I mentioned earlier, I’m a carpenter by trade. I keep a lot of my creations in this empty room until I have space for them in my shop in the town market. Because Cindy and I have been expecting our child, our first of many children, I’ve been busy making cots and even bedframes for when they’re older. But I didn’t expect to actually need them yet, so they’re stuck in the back behind the cabinets and other pieces that’re going be put to Market soon.”

Yang caught on quickly. “So we need to move those out of the way and bring the bedframes into the spare room?”

“You got it. That room wasn’t really built for four people to sleep in, but it’ll fit.”

That was all the blonde brawler needed to hear. “Well what’re we waiting for? Let’s do this.”

The burly man and the huntress got to work. Abel made a _lot_ of furniture, carved straight from the large trees in the forest. It was all beautifully crafted, lovingly polished, and _heavy_. At first Yang had no problems, using the muscles she had proudly built up from years of training to be a huntress. She was proud that she could keep up with the mountain of muscle beside her, moving cabinets and wardrobes easily. But every time she moved a piece furniture it became harder. It was as if they were getting heavier. Sweat beaded her brow and dripped down her face, her arms were becoming tired and shaky.

Puffing out a tired breath, Yang had to stop and take a break, rubbing her sore arms. She had to take off her weapons, Ember Celica, so she could rub some life back into her wrists. But while she was resting her poor arms, Abel was still going strong. Heck, he didn’t even look strained. It was as if what he was moving weren’t even heavy to him. While comfortably holding a cabinet that Yang felt was stupidly heavy when she tried to lift it earlier, Abel flashed her a kind smile.

“Thanks for the help, but maybe you would like to go downstairs with the rest of the girls. Perhaps you can help Cindy in the kitchen? I’m sure you’d both love that.”

Even if it was unintentional, his patronising words lit a fire in Yang. She would show him! She was just as tough as any man. Brushing the long blonde hair that had been plastered to her sweaty forehead out of her eyes, she gave him a smirk filled with confidence she didn’t quite feel.

“Sorry but I’m not interested in that stuff. I can still help, no problem.”

Abel shrugged in nonchalance, but there was a hint of concern on his face. “Suit yourself.”

Using her anger at his condescending opinion that she should ‘go back to the kitchen’ as fuel, Yang forges on. Gaining a second wind, she was able to move the furniture again, but it was never as easy as it was before, and she was soon panting for breath again. Soon she was relegated to moving the smaller pieces while Abel moved the larger things like wardrobes and bookcases out of the way. All the while he looked completely unfazed. It all came to a head when they had finally reached the bedframes at the back of the room. Yang, eager to prove once and for all that she was tough enough, grabbed hold of the first bedframe and heaved. She strained like she had never strained before, sweat running down shaking arms, and the frame didn’t even shift.

There was a quiet sigh from behind her, and Abel gently brushed her aside. “Careful girl, you’ll injure yourself. Let me.”

Abel gripped the bedframe with his strong hands and lifted it up as if it were a toy. Watching the man easily move what she couldn’t with all of her might shook Yang to the core. For the first time she realised just how much taller Abel was compared to her. Even if she went on tip-toes she would barely clear his chest. Compared to his biceps, the strong arms she was so proud of before were like matchsticks.

A thought popped into Yang’s mind, unbidden. _Maybe these things aren’t heavy. Maybe you really are just a weak little girl._

Pushing the little voice in her head away, Yang tried to hide behind bravado as she watched Abel move the other three bedframes into the spare room. “W-well I bet you’re one of the strongest men in Pleasantville, huh?”

Abel continued to set up the frames while answering Yang’s question absentmindedly. “Hm? Oh, not really. Pretty much every guy in Pleasantville are around the same when it comes to size and strength. If anything, a few are a little stronger than me. It must be something in the water.”

He turned to her with a guileless expression on his face. “Could you grab the blankets and pillows from the linen closet? It’s in the second bathroom. I’ll deal with the mattresses as they might be a bit too heavy for you right now.”

A part of her wanted to feel indignation… but he was right. In her current state Yang really didn’t think she could even move some mattresses right now. Defeated, the huntress-in-training went to grab the blankets. As she did so, her mind wandered. She had always prided herself on her strength, she was stronger than most huntsman her age back home. But if Abel was right, and he had no reason to lie, then pretty much every man in Pleasantville was stronger than her. What a thought, in this town she really _was_ a weak little girl, because every woman was weak compared to the men here.

_Wouldn’t it be nice to find a nice strong man here to take care of a soft girl like you?_

The thought had wormed into Yang’s mind, and this time she didn’t chase it away. It felt… right.

*

The clock had chimed six, and it was dinner time in the Alderwood household. Team RWBY were sat in the dining room with their hosts, who were smiling genially at them. Cindy and Ruby had already set the table and served out the plates, and now it was time to dig in.

On the surface it looked like a fairly standard roast chicken dinner, albeit with all of the trimmings, but looks weren’t everything. For one, it smelt _heavenly_ , making the girls salivate even before they took a bite. But as soon as they started eating… well, nothing could compare. It was without a doubt some of the best food they had ever tasted. Even Weiss, who had grown up being served by gourmet chefs was impressed. Each bite was like ambrosia, and it took all of their willpower not to inhale it all and lick the plate clean in front of their hosts.

Abel for his part, kept eating as if this level of food was common. But then again, with Cindy as a wife it probably was. “Just wonderful dear. You really have come a long way since we got married. Marvellous food.”

The pure adoration in Cindy’s face was a testament to how much her husband’s words meant to her. “I’m so glad you like it dear; I’m always doing my best to improve for you. But I can’t take all the credit!” She slipped her hand into Ruby’s. “Ruby here helped quite a bit.”

The Man of the house gave Ruby a warm smile. “Then you’ve done well too Ruby. You’re going to make a lucky young man very happy someday.”

Ruby couldn’t help but blush at the comment. A small part in the back of her mind tried to whisper that it was kind of a sexist remark, but the thought dissipated quickly before it could properly form. Instead she smiled and shyly looked down at the remains of her dinner.

While this was going on, the other members of Team RWBY felt the faintest stirrings of envy for their team leader. If they had just helped out with making dinner then Abel would have praised them as well. Yang in particular was kicking herself for wasting her time helping Abel when she should have been helping in the kitchen instead. However, while Weiss and Yang were regretting it, Blake looked uncomfortable. Why was she feeling like this? It felt like Adam all over again, and wanting Abel’s praise didn’t sit well with her.

Cindy noticed Blake’s look of discomfort and smiled sweetly at her. The knowing amber eyes disturbing Blake even more.

“Now that we’ve had dinner, how about dessert? Ruby and I baked cookies for all of us!”

There was a chorus of agreements, and very quickly Cindy served everyone with a small plate of cookies each. Blake took a bite, and immediately shuddered with bliss. If dinner was marvellous then these cookies were sublime. It was the tastiest and sweetest dessert she had ever had the good fortune to eat. The moans of pleasure echoing throughout the dining hall proved she was not alone in her belief. Her discomfort faded, chased away by sweetness.

*

The sun had set, and the girls were turning in for the night. The huntresses-in-training had brought some camping gear as they expected to be roughing it in a burned-out town looking for survivors of the Grimm, but no change of clothes. Cindy was of course horrified at the thought of the girls sleeping in the same clothes they came in with. Soon each girl was outfitted with a nightie from Cindy’s own wardrobe. Red for Ruby, light blue for Weiss, black for Blake and sunflower yellow for Yang.

The nighties were actually a bit too big for them, especially around the bust considering Cindy’s developed figure. That may have been for the best though, as while Cindy dressed somewhat conservatively in dresses, her sleepwear was a bit risqué compared to her public clothing. All four of their nightgowns were cut the same way, leaving their shoulders completely bare save for two thin straps holding the whole thing up. The nightie also dipped just enough to give a hint of cleavage while cupping and supporting the breasts. Below that, the rest of the gown was sheer, providing only a hint of modesty for the rest of their sculpted, naked bodies, and it was cut to expose all of their leg up to mid-thigh. Thankfully, the matching panties that Cindy provided covered their most intimate parts. The whole dress was clearly designed to be easy on the eyes and could be slipped off in a moment’s notice, great for marital relations.

But while the teammates had given each other approving looks on how good they all looked wearing these, little was actually spoken between them. They were all tired after a long day and a big meal. The calming atmosphere the Alderwood household soon had the girls peacefully falling asleep.

As they slept, the dreaming began…

*

Softly humming to herself, Ruby pulled out a tray of freshly baked cookies from the oven. She was older now, a fully matured woman with her own home. As she placed the tray of cookies on the windowsill to cool, she sighed in contentment and marvelled at how wonderful her newly refurbished kitchen was. Why, it was probably even better than Cindy Alderwood’s next door!

“Mama! Mama!”

Ruby spun around and smiled in complete joy as her two perfect little children ran into the kitchen. Her little boy looking so smart and turned out in his dungarees, and her little girl looked just like an angel in her cute pink dress. Smoothing down the skirts of her red and black polka dot dress, Ruby bent down at the waist, palms on her knees, so she could get a better look at her darling children.

“What is it sweethearts?” The sugary tone in her more mature voice was so much like Cindy’s.

“Can we have a cookie now?” said her son _what was his name?_

“Please?” said her little girl _what are their names?_

“Oh mommy’s sorry, but they’ve only just been pulled out of the oven, wait for them to cool a little first okay?”

The twin ‘awws’ from her cute little children caused something inside Ruby to melt.

Suddenly, a man came in, his face was hidden in shadows but he wore a perfectly tailored three-piece suit. While she was still bent at the waist, he gave Ruby’s ass a playful spank across the rear, causing her to yelp in surprise, and arousal.

“Listen to your mother,” came a deep masculine voice that made Ruby’s knees weak.

She straightened up and went on tip toes to kiss the kiss her husband on the cheek. “It’s so wonderful to have you home, honey. Dinner will be ready in an hour.”

*

Wiping off the last speck of dust from her mantlepiece, Weiss’s eyes swept over the room with pride. It was the best decorated home in all of Pleasantville! It even won the competition for ‘best decorated’. Oh, the other housewives had pouted, but congratulated her all the same. Better luck next year! Indeed, her husband _what is his name?_ had even given her a pat on the head when she showed him the first-place ribbon she had won. Weiss wondered if he would like the steak or the lamb for dinner…

But she was wool gathering, she had a guest. Willow Schnee, her mother sat with her legs crossed in her second-finest chair (the best belonged to the Man of the house). She sipped a cup of tea elegantly, then set the cup and saucer back on the side-table. She looked up at Weiss and gave her a proud motherly smile.

“Weiss, I have to apologise to you. I haven’t been the mother I should have been, but now that I’ve seen how happy you are here, I _know_ you’ll be a better mother than I ever was. A proper Pleasantville mother.”

Weiss gushed at the compliment.

*

Yang was making sandwiches in her new kitchen, while wearing a lovely yellow dress her hubby bought for her just last week, with an apron to keep it clean of course. She was tapping her bare foot to the sound of the Pleasantville radio station at it played all the best hits from Vale. Except for the censored ones of course, with all that silly nonsense about female empowerment. Honestly, some of the musicians from the capital were so silly.

Finished buttering all the bread she needed for her husband and son’s sandwiches, Yang grabbed the jam jar and tried to open it. She gasped and strained, but the darn jar lid just wouldn’t come off. Sighing, she called out.

“Honey, could you help me?”

A large, muscular man, with a handsome face obscured in shadows stepped into the kitchen. “What’s wrong dear?” _What’s your husband’s name?_

She proffered the jam jar to him with a pout.

Needing no other explanation, her hunk of a husband took the jar gently in his large hands and popped the lid off with ease. The sight of him easily doing something she couldn’t had Yang all hot and bothered.

Her husband noticed immediately. “Forget the sandwiches.” He easily scooped her up and carried her bridal style in his large arms.

“Honey! What about our boy?” _What was his name?_

“He’s not going to starve; he’s just going to get his sandwich a little later. Say, twenty or thirty minutes or so?”

She giggled and let her Man carry her upstairs.

*

Blake lay on the couch, nursing her pregnant belly. It wouldn’t be long now, just another few weeks and she’ll be a proud Pleasantville mother. Of course, as happy as this made her, by this late stage of pregnancy she isn’t able to do very much now. Indeed, the only dark spot during this joyous time was the fact that she wasn’t able to clean her hubby’s home to her normal perfect standards. Still, her generous and loving husband _what was his name?_ didn’t mind and forgave her for it considering her condition.

She stroked her gravid belly lovingly as she felt one of her babies kick while in the womb. Yes, one of them. She was carrying twins! The urban legend of Faunus carrying litters of children was exactly that, but knowing she was carrying _two_ bundles of joy swelled her heart with happiness, and she very much knew it turned her husband on. _What was his name?_

He would be home from work soon! Dinner’s already been set up, but she couldn’t fully serve him like she usually would. Well Blake was sure he wouldn’t mind a blowjob…

_This isn’t right!_

*

Blake awoke in a cold sweat. Her breath was ragged as she took several lungsful of air, breathing rapidly as she tried to quell the fear clutching her soul. What was that? What was _that_?

She looked around the room to find her teammates to sleeping soundly and peacefully, a small smile touching their faces as they dreamed the night away. Where they dreaming anything like what she was dreaming? Blake hoped not, she would hope that her teammates would be able to fight it off like she had.

Fight off… what? Blake clutched her head in discomfort. It was just a bad dream, right? But like all dreams it was already fading. She knew she hadn’t liked what she was dreaming, but couldn’t remember the particulars. Soon within a few minutes, it was already gone. With the memory gone, Blake’s fear began to fade with it. What was she so worried about anyway? This house was so calming, so peaceful, so domestic. Nothing bad could happen here.

With a wave of tiredness washing over her, Blake slipped back under the bedcovers and went back to sleep.

Everything would be fine in the morning, her sleepy brain reasoned before sleep – and another dream – overtook her.

After all, this was Pleasantville.


	2. A Full Day

It was another beautiful day in the town of Pleasantville.

As the sun rose over the forest and the town’s high stone walls, it shined its splendour down upon all it touched. It lit up the lovingly maintained parks and signalled that the town marketplace would soon open. Perfectly manicured gardens were revealed in the dawn light, and some enterprising wives of the town were already putting out laundry to dry. The perfect suburban sprawl was being reintroduced to daylight, and as the sun’s rays peeked into the Alderwood’s guest room window, Team RWBY stirred awake.

Almost as one, the four huntresses in training rose up from their somewhat cramped sleeping quarters feeling fully refreshed and ready to take on the day. They all had small smiles on their faces, as all of them remembered waking from a fantastic dream… although none of them could quite remember what it was anymore.

It was Ruby who broke the companionable silence, putting her arms over her head and stretching them as she did so. “Let’s go team RWBY! That was a good night’s sleep, but we’ve got things to do today!”

Weiss, who was doing her hair back up in its traditional off-to-the-side ponytail murmured her agreement. “Yes, while it was nice of the Alderwood’s to host us, and treat us so well, we should resolve this today. We should meet up with the Mayor of this town as soon as possible and get back to civilization.”

Of course, while this was going on, Yang was making a bit of a rude discovery. “Uh, I don’t wanna start a panic, but our clothes are missing.”

_That_ caught everyone’s attention. The girls rushed over to the wardrobe that they’d stored their clothes for the night but found it empty, save for their weapons. All they had on was the nightgowns Cindy had lent them, and they were far too skimpy to wear in public. The girls’ first instinct told them that their things had been stolen, but if that was the case, surely their more valuable dust-forged weapons would have been stolen too.

Thankfully before panic could set in, Cindy stepped into the room. Despite it being only a little past dawn, the pregnant housewife was already fully dressed in a crimson summer dress, with her long dark hair and makeup done up perfectly. She greeted her houseguests with a smile, carrying a bundle of folded clothes in her arms.

“Oh! You’re already awake. How lovely.”

Ruby smiled back at their host, but there was a hint of nervousness in her tone. “Hi Cindy! Um, do you happen to know where our clothes are?”

“Of course I do! They’re in the wash to be laundered.”

Blake’s eyes narrowed in suspicion, verbally contributing for the first time. “Why?”

Cindy blinked in surprise, before resuming her normal cheerful expression. “You wore those clothes _all day_ yesterday. I couldn’t in good conscience allow you to wear those same clothes today without cleaning them first. They’ll be clean and dry in a few hours, never fret.”

It was Yang’s turn to step up. “That’s really nice of you Cindy, but now we have nothing else to wear but these nightgowns. We can’t exactly meet the Mayor dressed like this.”

The housewife tittered, before showing off the clothes she had in her hands. “Oh, good gracious me! Never you worry, we’ll make sure you’re decent. My Abel has a few sisters, married on the other side of town, and he had some of their old clothes stored in the attic, heavens knows why. You can wear these while your outfits are being cleaned.”

She placed the clothes on the bed, and then quickly stepped out of the room to let them change in privacy. The huntresses-in-training looked at Cindy’s offering and exchanged concerned looks.

“I don’t know if I want to wear these.” Said Blake.

“It’s either these or keep wearing the nightgowns.” Replied Weiss.

After that there was little argument.

*

Cindy was in the kitchen making a pot of tea when Team RWBY walked in, all of them a little sheepish in their current getup.

All four girls were dressed in knee-length plaid skirts and pink blouses with a starched collar. The skirts were of course colour coded. Red and grey for Ruby, yellow and black for Yang, blue and white for Weiss and black and grey for Blake. Coupled with the ankle-high white socks and plain brown low-heeled shoes (which they of course weren’t wearing in the kitchen), they all looked like schoolgirls, not the Huntsman Academy trainees they actually were.

The pregnant housewife gasped and clapped her manicured hands together. “Oh my! You all look so adorable like this.”

All of the team fidgeted at that. Internally each of the huntresses in training were pretty embarrassed at their attire. It made them all feel like little girls. The most worrying part was how… natural they felt dressed like this. It was especially galling for Ruby, who was younger and shorter than the rest of the team. She’d fought hard in Beacon to be respected even after being enrolled two years earlier than the rest of her year group. Now after wearing these clothes and feeling so _comfortable_ in them made a part of her feel like she had been a little girly girl playing dress up all along.

Weiss spoke up. “Thank you for saying that Cindy, but do you know when our proper clothes will be ready? We all feel a little… childish in these.”

“And it’s hard to carry our weapons in these clothes.” Added Blake.

Cindy looked crestfallen. “I’m sorry if doesn’t meet your tastes. I would have lent you some of my clothes, but I’m afraid they’d all be a little bit big for you in… certain areas. Abel’s sisters were about your size, before they came into their full figures anyway. And I really did think you all looked cute as a button.”

Her face suddenly lit up. “I know! After we’ve had breakfast how about we go shopping together? It’s always fun to go shopping, and I’m sure you’d find something else you’d prefer to wear.”

The girls initially wanted to protest and stubbornly wait for their normal outfits to be ready. But the peaceful and domestic atmosphere the house exuded stifled their first instincts. It had been nice of Cindy to clean their clothes like that and a shopping trip _did_ sound like fun. They could pick up a souvenir of their time in Pleasantville. After giving each other a glance, they all hesitantly nodded.

*

Breakfast, like dinner, was perfect.

It was a simple affair, some hardboiled eggs with toast and a small side of bacon, but it was mouth wateringly delicious. The girls inhaled the food in front of them, barely able to keep their table manners when served such amazing food. However, it didn’t take very long for the girls to notice that there was an empty space at the head of the table.

“Where’s Abel?” said Yang.

At the mention of her husband’s name, Cindy stared at his empty seat longingly. “Abel’s already gone to work for the day. It’s why I was up so early. I couldn’t send my Man off without breakfast after all.”

It was strange. As they continued to listen to Cindy, a discomforting feeling settled over the huntress team. A powerful feeling of guilt. It was Ruby who put voice to their troubled thoughts.

“We’re sorry we didn’t help you with breakfast Cindy.”

She smiled warmly at them and patted Ruby’s hand affectionately. “It’s quite alright. You’re all still young and unmarried. A few mistakes here and there can be completely forgiven. How about you help me with the dishes before we go out shopping? That’ll straighten things out.”

Cindy’s forgiveness caused the girls to sigh in relief, none of them wanted to disappoint their host after all, especially after tasting this _wonderful_ breakfast. Seriously, how did she make it taste this good?

*

With the five of them working together, cleaning and drying the dishes took no time at all. It had been a strange experience. Ruby, decked out with an apron and pink rubber gloves was the most eager to help and had taken to washing dishes alongside Cindy with aplomb. Yang, still feeling somewhat down from her humiliating display when she tried to help Abel _how did that happen?_ was also helping out as best as she could.

Less interested in the whole endeavour was Blake, who was internally questioning why it took five women to clean a bunch of breakfast dishes. She had taken to drying the washed plates with a dishcloth, and was handing them to Weiss, who was putting them away. Speaking of the Schnee heiress, Weiss was handling each plate and dish gingerly and with clear disdain. She had spent her entire life being waited on by servants, and while she wasn’t one to laze about, she clearly felt that such work was beneath her. Still, doing this work in the kitchen with her friends was more fulfilling then she thought it would be…

*

With that done they soon found themselves outside of the Alderwood home, facing the town of Pleasantville once again. It was another perfect day in the perfect town. The sun shone down upon the girls while a refreshingly cool breeze swept passed them and ruffled their skirts. It was odd, earlier Team RWBY would have been mortified to be seen wearing these clothes in public… but out in the Pleasantville sunshine the clothes felt completely natural. In fact, now that they were all wearing skirts, they blended in with the rest of the womenfolk rather well compared to when they were wearing their huntress gear.

Leading them out was Cindy, giving the girls another dazzling smile before stepping out of the house in her high heels. The girls followed her out like ducklings as they crossed the ever-present white-picket fence.

“Come on girls, I’ll show you the best place to- “

She suddenly stopped and waved to a couple that was walking on the other side of the street. “Oh! Mercury, Emerald, over here!”

The pair, upon being called, dutifully crossed over. The Man, Mercury, like all Pleasantville men, was powerfully built. Though he was less musclebound than Abel, he had a swimmer’s physique and filled out the grey turtleneck and slacks he was wearing nicely. Emerald, in contrast to Mercury’s physique, was all curves. She was wearing a forest-green summer dress which was sporting a noticeable baby bump only a little smaller than Cindy’s own. She ran a hand through her green bob-cut hair, her wedding ring catching the morning sunlight.

“Cindy! It’s so wonderful to see you neighbour!” she glanced over at Team RWBY and gave them a dazzling smile identical to Cindy’s, “And who are these delightful young women?”

Cindy gestured to the huntress team, almost like she was showing them off. “This is Ruby, Weiss, Blake and Yang. They’re guests from Out of Town, huntresses from the capital. Abel found the dears in the woods and they’re staying with us for a little while.”

Emerald clapped her hands together. “How lovely. I hope you’re enjoying your time here girls.”

The huntress team responded to the pleasantries politely, but it was Ruby who contributed the most to the conversation. “Yeah this seems like a nice place. I mean, Cindy told me you decided to make a life here, right?”

The green-haired housewife nodded her head rapidly. “That’s right! I couldn’t imagine ever leaving Pleasantville now, we’re both so happy here. Isn’t that right dear?”

Mercury spoke, contributing to the conversation for the first time. “Of course. This place is perfect.” He placed a hand on Emerald’s swelling belly. “I had a terrible father growing up, but here we can raise our children far better than how I was raised.”

Emerald’s face lit up with joy at her husband’s touch, “Yes! It’s much better than…” her expression faltered, “…our previous life.” She rubbed her forehead in pain.

Blake responded before anyone else. “Are you alright?”

The pained expression eased in the housewife’s face when Blake showed concern. “Oh, yes. Don’t mind me! I sometimes get these darned headaches whenever I try to think about the past. I was a proper rabble rouser alongside Cinde- Cindy here, once. Sometimes I feel like there’s something I’m supposed to remember…” a wistful look flitted over her face, before it morphed into her regular happy expression. “But the headaches are passing now. I used to get them all the time when we first came to Pleasantville, but I rarely have one now. One day, soon, I won’t have one _ever_ again.”

Mercury wrapped a strong arm around Emerald’s smaller shoulders and gave her a kiss on the top of her head, much to her delight. “I’m happy to hear you say that.” Looking up to address the other women he said, “I’ve got to go now. I work on the defensive wall against any possible Grimm. Not that we ever get any mind you, but that’s not a reason to slack off. I don’t want to leave Emerald alone in the house so do you mind if she joined you on your little shopping trip?”

Cindy beamed. “Of course! The more the merrier, right girls?” Caught up in the enthusiasm of the moment, the huntress team all nodded along mindlessly. They found themselves agreeing with Cindy a lot recently.

*

With Cindy and Emerald as guides, it didn’t take long for the girls to reach the Pleasantville marketplace. Even at this early hour, the little suburban shops were opening up for business. There seemed to be a shop for everything, from metalworking to dust crystals, but Cindy led the girls straight past these places to a corner with four larger shops standing in a row.

“These,” said Cindy proudly, “are the four most essential shops for any woman. Though today we only need to visit the first one on the left. The _Pleasantville Boutique_ is the very best store for a young woman looking to turn some heads with the latest fashion.”

“Out of curiosity what are the other three stores?” asked Blake, somewhat warily.

Emerald fielded this question. “Well the middle-store is for Mothercare. Maternity dresses, baby clothes, that sort of thing. Next to that is _Pleasantville Brides_ , it’s for bridal gowns.”

“An entire store for wedding dresses?” said Ruby, a little confused.

Cindy looked at Ruby as if she had grown three heads and was breathing fire. “Of course, it’s one of the most important events in any woman’s life.”

Emerald continued on after that little aside. “Finally, the store on the very right…” she blushed, “that store is for nightwear and… other things. You’ll learn more about this store when you get married.”

Before the huntress team could properly process what Emerald had just said Cindy cut in. “Come along girls. Like I said the other three stores aren’t important for you, yet. The sooner we’re inside the sooner we can find something more suitable for you than Abel’s sisters’ hand-me-downs.”

As Cindy bids they head inside. The boutique was pretty similar to the ones found in Vale in all honesty. Except stores in the capital would have all sorts of different fashions from all walks of life. Here, one all-pervading theme dominated the choice of fashion; dresses. On almost every rack and manikin, a dress was being displayed. They were all in a myriad of different colours and cuts, but they couldn’t hide the fact that they were dresses.

Yang took a long look at the array of dresses and said what her other teammates were thinking. “Does this place sell anything other than dresses?”

Cindy and Emerald, who were already browsing the wares, spun around and gave the blonde brawler a bemused look. It was Emerald who took the lead. “Well… there are blouses and cardigans upstairs, and various types of skirts too. Though I wouldn’t know why you wouldn’t take the opportunity to get a nice Pleasantville dress.”

Weiss was already looking at the dresses with the critical eye of an heiress, feeling the fabric of one between her fingers. “They _are_ very well made. We might as well have a look, after all everything in this place is better than what we’re wearing right now.”

There wasn’t much argument to that, and the girls all got to looking. At first it was with some reluctance, but like the Alderwood home _Pleasantville Boutique_ had an atmosphere of its own. An aura of something akin to giddiness settled over the huntresses. The longer the girls browsed, the more they found they enjoyed it. A sense of euphoria seemed to overcome them and soon they were all giggling together as they tried on various dresses. The more dresses they tried on, the happier they got, until beaming smiles eerily similar to Cindy and Emerald’s began to show on their faces.

Soon all four members of Team RWBY had shed the pink schoolgirl outfits Cindy had loaned them and had donned proper dresses. The two housewives clapped excitedly as each member of the huntress team stepped out of the changing rooms with their carefully chosen outfit.

First out was Weiss, being the most used to these kinds of dresses already. She was wearing an eggshell blue dress that revealed much of her arms, and dipped into an elegant V-neck while exposing no cleavage. The dress flowed down smoothly into a ruffled skirt that ended just below the knees.

Next was Yang, wearing a dark yellow dress. It was also cut with a V-neck but unlike Weiss’ choice it showed the barest hint of cleavage while remaining modest by Pleasantville standards. It left her arms bare and some of her back would have also been exposed too if it wasn’t covered by her voluminous blonde hair. The skirt flared out a little and ended just at the knee.

Blake emerged from the changing room wearing a black dress with dark purple highlights going through it in a tartan pattern. The upper half of the dress was a blouse shirt with a flared collar buttoned up to her neck and covered her upper arms with buttoned cuffs. The blouse flowed into a sweeping skirt that fell to just below her knees.

Finally, Ruby shyly stepped out of the changing room with her chosen outfit. It was a red dress done up with floral patterned black lace and cut to show her neck down to her collar bones. A red belt decorated with a rose-shaped bow divided the dress in two, with the ruffled red and black lace skirt ending at the knee.

“Now you’re looking like proper Pleasantville women.” Said Cindy cheerfully. And as soon as she said that the girls felt a thrill of pleasure run through them.

“But you’re still missing something,” said Emerald. She held up a shoebox. “No dress is complete without a good pair of heels!”

“Or more than one pair.” Said Cindy with a cheeky smile.

Ruby looked down shyly. “Well I’m not very good with heels. The only time I’ve ever worn them was at the Vytal Festival dance party and I really didn’t like them. They were just so awkward.”

The two housewives actually froze for a moment at Ruby’s statement, before Cindy strode over and wrapped Ruby in her arms, pressing her face into her generous bosom. “You poor thing. Only ever worn heels _once?_ No wonder you had problems with them, a woman has to practice first before they can show off to the menfolk.”

Emerald put her hands on her hips and gave Yang a stern look. “Cindy told me that you’re Ruby’s older sister. As the elder you had a duty to teach your sister how to wear heels properly. How would she ever find a Man if she wears nothing but boots all of her life?”

Yang actually blushed in embarrassment. She averted her gaze, unable to face Emerald’s disappointment. She mumbled out an apology. “It just didn’t seem important until now.”

Cindy patted Yang on the shoulder. “That’s alright dear, so long as you understand just how important it is now.”

After that little exchange, the girls were soon trying on the heels that matched the dresses they were wearing. Taking her little dressing down to heart, Yang was even helping Ruby learn how to walk in them properly while the two housewives looked on proudly. Weiss also chimed in to help, her being the most used to wearing heels out of the team.

Apart from the rest, Blake looked on with a worried expression. This didn’t feel right. Sure, the dress was lovely, and the black pumps she found matched it perfectly but- _snap out of it!_ She shook her head violently, trying to clear her thoughts before her concerns frittered away. She had to hold onto this feeling of wrongness-

“Are you alright Blake? You look a little peaked.” asked Weiss.

“Hm? Oh yes, just fine!” said Blake, already forgetting what she was thinking about. This shop’s atmosphere was so calming all of a sudden. Perhaps she should buy another dress while she was here…

Not noticing Blake’s failed internal struggle, Ruby was getting the hang of walking around in heels. Having an experienced woman like Cindy helping her get used to her first true pair of heels (the pair she had for the dance party were borrowed) was a godsend. The cute red ankle strap heels Cindy had picked out for her worked wonderfully with her new dress. It was almost like shopping with a mother, something Ruby had secretly dreamed about doing, but never could because of her own mother’s untimely death.

She wobbled for a moment, but quickly righted herself. Though the moment of discomfort brought something of the normal Ruby back to the fore. “Hey these dresses are really great, but are there any clothes in this store that we can move around in easily?”

Yang chimed in. “Yeah, like something we could exercise in?”

The two housewives exchanged a glance. “It depends on what you mean by exercise.” Said Cindy.

Emerald took over the conversation. “In Pleasantville the three most popular types of exercise for women are ballet, gymnastics, and yoga. Pretty much every girl in Pleasantville exercises in order to healthy, trim and… flexible so they can either catch the eye of a Man or to maintain a happy marriage.”

“Both Emerald and I can’t really do proper exercise now while carrying little ones. But we keep up with basic exercises so it’ll be easier to get back into shape after we’ve delivered. When we first got married, we used to take the exercise classes all the time,” Cindy brightened up, “I know! Why don’t we take you to the ballet s class that’s on this afternoon? It’s right next door to the exercise class for pregnant women so we can all go together.”

Weiss perked up at that. “I used to do some ballet as a girl before I started training as a huntress. It sounds like fun.”

Seeing that the heiress was all for it, Ruby shrugged in acceptance. “We have to see the Mayor first, and we might not stay past that. But I think I speak for the team when I say we’d love to join you.”

Yang nodded at that, and so did Blake, if a little hesitantly.

At their agreement Cindy clapped her hands together excitedly. “I’m so glad. We’ll have to purchase some leotards straight away.”

There was a pregnant pause. “Leotards?” said the team near simultaneously.

“Of course. You can’t exercise in a dress sillies. In fact, all of the exercise classes are done in leotards, it’s best for freedom of movement. Proper Pleasantville women wear leotards while exercising.”

Normally the girls may have questioned this, but why should they start arguing now? In this shop, where they’ve had so much _fun_ while shopping with the two housewives, why should they object? The atmosphere of excitement this shop seemed to exude had swept them away, and the girls found themselves nodding in agreement.

“Well I guess we’ll have to buy some then.” Said Yang.

And so once again the girls were shuttled into the changing rooms and were trying on the ‘exercise clothing’ Cindy and Emerald handed to them. Compared to the relatively conservative dresses, the leotards left next to nothing to the imagination. Each girl’s leotard was cut the same, exposing the entirety of their bare legs and riding high on their hips. It also left their arms up to the shoulder bare and exposed quite a bit of their backs. The leotard dipped a little in the front too, but it exposed no cleavage. Of course, despite this attempt at modesty the leotards were completely skin-tight, revealing every inch of their sculpted bodies from years of huntress training and the full shape of their breasts. They may as well have been wearing body paint.

Like all of the fashion decisions pushed onto them by the two housewives, the leotards were colour coded. Dark red for Ruby, dark blue for Weiss, golden yellow for Yang, and black for Blake.

“Such perfect figures!” exclaimed Emerald.

“I envy you; it’ll take me weeks to get back into that sort of shape after the baby is born. But it’ll be worth it to please my Abel.” Said Cindy.

Even with the housewives showering them with praise, the girls were embarrassed by what they were wearing. “Um, this is a little revealing. Is this really what we’d wear if we exercised like Proper Pleasantville women?” said Ruby a little uncertainly.

“Of course! You’ll fit right in with the other girls in class. Oh, and don’t worry about it being revealing, no men are allowed in. The only Man who should see you wearing this is your husband after all.”

The huntresses relaxed at that. It would have embarrassing to have a Man see them this way... especially while they were still single.

*

After being convinced to buy a dress, a pair of heels, and a leotard each it didn’t take much more convincing for the girls to splurge out on another dress, with heels to match. Ruby in particular found a red and black polka dot dress that she felt drawn to for some reason. They had even been persuaded to pick up some lingerie that went with the dresses, much to their private embarrassment. The shop owner was beaming as she rang up the huntress team’s purchases. Honestly it was a little expensive, but the girls felt it was worth it to look as good as Cindy and Emerald did.

The fact that the dresses they bought didn’t have a way to store their weapons like their normal clothing did didn’t even occur to them.

Now back in the dresses they originally picked out in the store, the girls finally headed out of the Boutique. Immediately the four huntresses in training could detect a marked difference. They had spent more time in the shop then they had realised, and now there were quite a few men and women going about their business in the marketplace. Most of the men were working behind the counter, a few were doing some shopping themselves, and one or two were simply there to carry things their wives were too dainty to carry by themselves.

Then there were the women. With most of the men in work by this time of day, they far outnumbered them on the street. Some were pushing prams, having to stop often for other passing women to coo at their babies. Others were picking up groceries, exchanging recipe ideas with other women. It was a riot of colour on the walkways with every dress or flowing skirt on the Pleasantville women’s nubile forms being a different shade from the last.

The girls had seen all of this before, but now they didn’t feel like outsiders looking in. They weren’t being glanced at in polite curiosity as Out of Towner’s or Strangers. The polite but curious gazes had been replaced by smiles and the occasional greeting. Team RWBY were dressed just like every other woman in town now, they belonged, and the townspeople treated them as such.

But the huntresses didn’t take long to spend basking in the glow of the town’s acceptance. “We should see the Mayor now.” Said Blake.

“Blake’s right we’ve put it off for too long.” Said Ruby.

Cindy happily jumped into the conversation. “You didn’t put it off girls, you took the time to make yourselves presentable. All Pleasantville men know to wait a while for a woman to get ready. I’m sure the Mayor will be pleased as punch to meet you all.”

*

After their (not so short) interlude at the boutique, the girls had finally arrived at the Mayor’s home. One would expect the Mayor of such a large town would have a mansion to themselves, but it was only slightly larger than the houses next to it. It had the same red-brick facing and the same white-picket fence and immaculate garden as all of the others, another example of a perfect house on a perfect street.

Elegantly, Cindy wrapped her knuckles on the front door’s black lacquer finish, and door almost immediately opened. For the first time, the huntress team got their first look at the Mayor of Pleasantville.

He was a tall man, on par with Abel in size, with ebony dark hair and golden eyes set in a handsome face with a strong jawline. He was also surprisingly young, mid-twenties at the oldest. He wore a grey waistcoat over a white shirt with the top button undone and the sleeves rolled up to the elbows, exposing muscular arms, he also wore dark pinstriped trousers and polished shoes. He welcomed the huntress team with a winning smile and they all felt something inside of them melt at the sight of it.

“Well good morning Mrs Alderwood, Mrs Black… and four faces I don’t recognise, and I know every face in town. You must be the four huntresses that Mr Alderwood was telling me about last night. It’s a pleasure to meet you, my name is Martin Ashford.”

Since she was the team leader, Ruby knew it was her role to start the dialogue. “It’s great to meet you too Mayor Martin! My name’s Ruby Rose, and these are my teammates Weiss, Blake, and Yang.”

Martin inclined his head in acknowledgment to the huntresses-in-training before continuing. “Where are my manners? We shouldn’t be talking by the front door. Come in, we’ll have a proper chat in the sitting room. I’ll have my housekeeper brew us a pot of tea.”

His voice, even as polite as it was, held the tone of authority. Team RWBY responded instinctively and before they even realised it, they had already stepped into Martin’s house. Following Cindy and Emerald’s example, they were already slipping off their heels and storing them to the side, it wouldn’t do to scratch the floor after all.

As soon as they were inside the Mayor’s home, the girls immediately felt the same warm and calming atmosphere that the Alderwood house had settle over them. But even as they unconsciously relaxed in the aura the home seemed to exude; they could tell there was something different… something important was missing…

But there was no time for them to dwell on this missing piece, however, as the girls quickly found themselves being led into Martin’s sitting room. Fitting for the Mayor of the town, it was elaborately decorated, with tasteful mahogany furnishings and plush burgundy carpeting. Though the most eye-catching feature in the room was a large landscape painting mounted above the fireplace depicting a group of settlers building a church. The same church the girls had seen in the centre of town.

Martin sat down in a leather chair beside the fireplace and the girls quickly followed suit in seats surrounding the Mayor’s. Cindy and Emerald sat in their own comfortable seats primly, with their backs straight and legs crossed over one knee, and the huntresses-in-training unconsciously copied them. An elderly housekeeper appeared at the door, left a large tray with a teapot and cups and left quietly.

Pouring himself a cup of tea, Martin began to speak. “Now that we’re all comfortable, I just wanted to express my deepest apologies. I had no idea that our shutting down communications with the outside world would lead to such lovely ladies trudging through the forest.”

“No need to say sorry,” said Ruby, “we’re just happy that instead of Grimm attacked ruins we found a thriving town instead.”

Martin smiled at the team leader, making butterflies flutter in Ruby’s stomach. “That’s a positive way to look at it. And Pleasantville _is_ a thriving town. A town I hope you’ve enjoyed staying in.” He noticed their untouched teacups. “Please have a drink, it’s my housekeeper’s personal blend, I can guarantee you’ve never had anything like it.”

At his bidding, the girls all take a sip, and then almost immediately drained their cups then and there. The tea was sweet, almost syrupy, and it almost overloaded their taste buds with sweetness. Even Weiss and Blake, who usually weren’t all that into sweet beverages, were gulping their drinks down like no tomorrow.

While reeling from the sugar rush, Weiss spoke up. “This is lovely, Mayor Ashford. But you mentioned your housekeeper brewed it, is Mrs Ashford not at home?”

For the briefest of moments, the Mayor’s expression cracked before it resumed its normal cheerful expression. “Please, call me Martin, ‘Mayor Ashford’ was my uncle. As for your question I’m afraid there is no Mrs Ashford… at least not yet. My housekeeper is my aunt, the previous Mayor’s widow. For now, I remain a bachelor.”

At those words team RWBY finally realise what was different from the Alderwood’s home… It was missing a woman’s touch.

_The home is incomplete._ _A Man needs a wife and a wife needs a home._

The thought drifted through their heads just long enough for them to register it, before it sunk deep into their subconscious.

Martin continued to speak, “But we’re not here to talk about me. We at Pleasantville like to keep to ourselves, so we turned off our communications with the rest of the world, at least for now. It was never our intention to cause trouble for anyone, especially such fine young women as yourselves. So, to make up for all of the hassle I’ve broken our silence and called for an airship to come straight to us to pick you up. It would save you from trudging through the woods again, and you get to go home in style.”

“That’s sounds great!” Said Ruby.

“It would be nice to get back to Beacon.” Said Blake in return. Yang and Weiss nodding in agreement.

The Mayor let the girls chatter among themselves for a moment, before continuing. “There is one little snag, however. As you are well aware Pleasantville is not exactly on the beaten path. We’ll have to set up a clearing in the woods specially for such a craft, and it would take at least a day to make the clearing and for the airship to arrive. So you would have to stay in Pleasantville for just a little while longer.”

Ruby spoke up immediately. “But we couldn’t put you through the trouble of making a clearing in the forest just for us. We could always walk back to the forest edge today, now that we know you’re safe here we have to report back to Headmaster Ozpin.”

Hearing a sigh, the girls turned to face Cindy, who was pouting. “But Ruby, didn’t you say that if you could stay you would attend the ballet class with Emerald and I? Why trudge through the woods and dirty your brand-new heels when you can stay with Abel and I for another night?”

Ruby bit her lip, she _had_ agreed, and another night in Pleasantville couldn’t hurt, could it? She looked toward her teammates. “What do you want to do team? Should we stay and wait for the airship or go back right now on foot?”

“Let’s go now.” Said Blake immediately, her expression serious, “we’ve verified the town is safe, let’s just leave.”

The huntresses-in-training were surprised by the normally reserved Blake’s outburst. Martin, Cindy and Emerald only smiled.

Weiss sniffed. “Well I for one want to wait. I didn’t like walking here in the first place, so let’s go back in style when the airship comes.”

Yang nodded in agreement. “It would be a different story if I had brought Bumblebee… and a rope,” she added with a teasing glance toward Weiss, who rolled her eyes, “but since we’re on foot let’s relax for another night, what’s the worst that could happen?”

Seeing that her other teammates weren’t following her lead, Blake nodded hesitantly. “Yeah, I guess you’re right.”

Ruby turned back to Martin. “Well it looks like the team has spoken. We’ll wait here another day.”

The Mayor flashed his teeth in another winning smile, “I’m happy to hear that. We’re proud of our little town, and we hope you enjoy yourselves a little more before you have to leave. I was prepared to host you in my home for the night, but I’m afraid Mrs Alderwood would never forgive me for taking her houseguests away.”

Cindy giggled. “Oh, Mr Mayor, you always say the funniest things. I couldn’t be angry at you if I tried.” She turned to the huntresses-in-training. “Thank you for agreeing to stay girls. We’re going to have the most _wonderful_ time together, you’ll see!”

The girls perked up at that. Each member of the huntress team had found themselves enjoying their time with Cindy far more than any of them had expected. Spending another day with the friendly woman couldn’t possibly be a bad thing… right?

Martin took that as his queue to stand, with the girls quickly following suit. “Well I think that just about covers everything. Judging from Mrs Alderwood’s comments you had already made plans to enjoy what Pleasantville has to offer. I certainly don’t want to keep you any longer than I already have. I’ll come visit you when I have news regarding that airship.”

He offered his hand to shake and Ruby took it. Her smaller hand was engulphed by the Mayor’s, and his grip was firm but gentle. The feel of that strong hand gripped around her own caused something inside of Ruby to quiver. She managed to keep whatever this strange new feeling was out of her expression, but Martin smiled at her knowingly all the same.

After that, the girls said their own farewells to the Mayor and made to leave his home under the care of Cindy and Emerald. Compared to their shopping excursion, their little chat with the Mayor hadn’t taken anywhere near as long. Which was proper, the team supposed, they shouldn’t take up too much time of an important Man like the Mayor.

Everyone had slipped their heels back on, and were on their way out. Yang, who was in front of everyone, turned to face Cindy while opening the door and stepping through it.

“So, what’s the plan for lunch? After all of that talking I could eat a horse!”

Yang didn’t get the chance to hear Cindy’s reply. Because instead of stepping through an open door, the buxom blonde collided with what felt like a wall built in front of the entrance. Unfortunately, whatever she had bumped into she had done so with enough force that Yang found herself unbalanced in her new heels. She would have ended up having a nasty fall… if a strong pair of hands hadn’t grasped her shoulders to steady her.

“Whoa! Are you alright there, little lady?”

Blinking, Yang turned to face whoever had just caught her. Standing before her and filling the whole doorway was a powerfully built man. He was very similar to Abel in appearance, handsome with a stubble covered lantern jaw and bright blue eyes. But his hair was a shade lighter, and had grown out to almost reach his shoulders in a shaggy mane. He wore a flannel shirt and jeans, with brown boots. His hands were also still gripping Yang’s shoulders.

Realising that he was still holding her, judging from the light blush of embarrassment (or what she told herself was embarrassment) on Yang’s face, the stranger finally let go. “Oh, whoops. Sorry about that. I wasn’t expecting anyone to open the door just as I was going to knock.”

Fighting down the feelings that stirred within her when she felt his hands on her body, Yang mustered a reply. “Hey, no harm no foul right?”

Cindy jumped into the conversation with a startled exclamation. “Oh, Kane is that you?”

The newly named Kane tilted his head to look past Yang. “Cindy? Hey! How’s my favourite sister-in-law?”

“I’m feeling just swell, as always!” the dark-haired housewife turned to the huntresses in training, “Oh golly what am I doing? Girls this is my dear Abel’s brother, Kane Alderwood. Kane, these are my guests from Out of Town, Ruby, Weiss, Blake… and you’ve met Yang already.”

The girls all murmured their greetings and Kane waved amicably. “Howdy. Abel told me that he had guests, but I didn’t think I would run into you like this,” he stared into Yang’s eyes, “I’m certainly glad I didn’t hurt a pretty little sunflower like yourself.”

It was such a cheesy line, a line that would have had Yang’s eyes rolling out of her head just a few nights ago. But she could still feel the warmth of his hands on her body… and suddenly his cheesy lines made something flutter in her chest. In typical Yang fashion, the blonde brawler shrugged it off with trademark bravado.

“Y-you couldn’t put a scratch on me anyway.”

…Though the stutter in her first words betrayed her.

Sensing something was amiss with her friend, Blake jumped in. “What are you even doing here? It’s bit of a coincidence that you’re showing up just as we’re leaving.”

Kane shrugged his broad shoulders. “Coincidences happen. Like Abel I’m a carpenter, we work together actually, family business. Abel makes things from scratch, while I mostly do restoration work. The Mayor called me over to take a look at some of his older furniture.”

He glanced at his watch. “Speaking of which, the Mayor’s a nice guy but he doesn’t like to be kept waiting because he’s usually so busy. As much as I’ve loved being introduced to such lovely ladies, I’ve gotta get going.”

Cindy nodded animatedly. “We’ll get out of your hair then.” She glanced over at Yang, then back at Kane, a sly smile on her face. “Oh Kane, when you’re done and you close up shop with my hubby, why don’t you come over for dinner? I’m sure Abel would feel a little outnumbered if he had dinner with just us ladies. In fact, I’m sure a _single_ man such as yourself would like a proper home cooked meal.”

Kane made a show of considering Cindy’s offer. “Hmm, leftovers at home, or one of my amazing sister-in-law’s delicious meals. That’s _such_ a hard choice.”

“Well…” said Cindy teasingly, “I won’t be the only chef in the kitchen this time. The girls said they would help me out with dinner tonight, didn’t you girls?”

Did they? The huntresses in training all cast their minds back to earlier in the day, but none of them recalled agreeing to help with dinner. But Cindy _said_ they did, and Cindy had been right about everything else so far. Besides, it would be fun, wouldn’t it?

Ruby was especially enthusiastic. “Of course! I’d love to cook with you again. It was so much fun the first time.”

Upon seeing Ruby’s obvious enthusiasm, her teammates all gave words of agreement. Although Weiss and Blake looked more reluctant than Yang.

“Well now I’m definitely coming over.” Said Kane, with another glance at Yang, who was still sporting a light blush on her face. “Something tells me it’ll be a dinner to remember.

*

After their eventful morning out and about the town of Pleasantville, the huntresses in training were relieved to make it back to the Alderwood home. They had had fun, and been introduced to some great people in the form of Emerald, Mercury, Martin and Kane, but the girls found that being back inside the walls of Cindy’s home was the most relaxing.

As soon as they stepped inside the increasingly familiar aura of domesticity washed over them, buoying their spirits. Emerald had gone back home to prepare lunch for Mercury, so it was just ‘us girls again’, according to Cindy. They didn’t know it, but the huntresses in training all had small smiles gracing their faces as they slipped off their new heels again and followed Cindy quietly into the kitchen.

The barefoot and pregnant housewife spun around to face her house guests. “Golly it’s already been such a swell day, and it’s still only lunch time!”

“Speaking of lunch what’re we going to be making?” said Ruby excitedly.

Cindy giggled. “Oh Ruby, having such an eager beaver like you around brightens up the room! It won’t be anything extravagant, that’s for dinner. We’ll be making a nice light salad, we wouldn’t want to upset your stomachs before your exercise class, would we?”

The girls all found themselves nodding to that. They had spent enough time fighting Grimm that they all knew doing so on a full stomach was a bad idea. _Not that they would_ ever _have to have fight while in Pleasantville, wasn’t that nice?_ They imagined exercising in a full stomach would just be as uncomfortable.

“Although,” said Cindy, with a troubled look on her face, “since it’s only a light salad having all of us prepare it would be a little like using an elephant gun to swat a fly…” Her expression suddenly brightened up, “I know! Your clothes should have dried on the washing line by now. How about two of you bring it back in for me while the other two help me here?”

Blake raised her hand right away. “I’ll get the clothes from the line with Yang.”

The aforementioned Yang was a little surprised by being volunteered like that, but nodded along anyway. “Yeah, it’ll be nice to get our threads back.”

Cindy smiled sweetly at them. “Thank you, girls. You’re such time savers. I can only hope that my future daughters are just as helpful.”

Ruby grabbed Weiss by the shoulders. “Well it looks like it’s me and Weiss helping out with lunch.”

The Schnee heiress blinked rapidly as she came to the realisation that she’d been volunteered just like Yang.

*

Between Cindy and Ruby’s cheerful enthusiasm, Weiss was unable to get a word in edgeways before a dark blue apron was pulled over her head and tied around her waist. She honestly wanted to protest as she hadn’t actually agreed to help out with lunch but seeing her teammate so happy put a stop to that. She and Ruby had gotten off to a rocky start at the beginning, but they had become true friends in their first year at Beacon and so if her team leader wanted to make lunch together, who was she to disagree?

So, there she was, right next to Ruby who was wearing her own frilly white apron, standing at attention, ramrod straight with her hands clasped in front of her. She appeared to all the world like an attentive student looking to impress, and Weiss hadn’t even noticed that she was standing the same way.

Having taken out several different vegetables and sauces out of the fridge, Cindy addressed her two assistants with another winning smile. “Alright girls, just because it’s a light salad doesn’t mean we get to slack off. Every meal we make has to be packed with love and care. Ruby, slice the cucumbers for me. Weiss, please shred the lettuce. I’ll work on the salad dressing and the tomatoes. Chop chop.”

Ruby got to work right away, and soon the housewife and the team leader were side by side chopping up vegetables. But while Ruby was enthusiastic, Weiss’ response was much more tepid. Gingerly she stepped up to the counter and began peeling the head of lettuce, all the while wondering why she was even doing this in the first place.

Before she came to Beacon she had barely ever set foot in a kitchen. At home there were servants to do everything. She had made instant coffee a few times, but that was just about it. Now here she was preparing a salad alongside a barefoot and pregnant housewife. Weiss had come a long way from the spoiled rich girl she used to be thanks to her friends in Team RWBY, but deep down the Schnee heiress still believed such housework was beneath her.

The clear reluctance in her work was apparent to Cindy, who frowned in concern. “Ruby, could you be a dear and slice the tomatoes please? I’m going to be helping Weiss.”

“Yes ma’am,” said Ruby, who immediately swapped places with Cindy.

With a motherly smile, Cindy gracefully stepped past the exuberant team leader to stand just behind Weiss. Placing her head on Weiss’ shoulder (and inadvertently pressing her large bosom against her back), the housewife reached out from behind the Schnee heiress and grasped the back of her hands.

“I don’t think you’ve ever shredded lettuce before. Let me help you.”

Cindy expertly guided Weiss’ hands, finishing the heiress’ half-hearted effort in peeling the outermost layer of lettuce away from the rest. All the while she softly murmured instructions in her ear.

“We’ll wash the outer layer in a moment, but now we’re going to slice the lettuce in half and shred it.”

Keeping a controlling grip on Weiss’ hands, Cindy guided the heiress into picking up a large knife and cutting the lettuce just as she instructed. It would have been a task the huntress-in-training would have been totally unsuited for, but with Cindy’s guiding hands and constant soft instructions in her ear Weiss quickly took up the art of vegetable preparation.

“You’re doing so well, I’m so proud of you.” Said Cindy warmly.

_Proud of you_. How often had Weiss ever heard those words? Certainly, never from her father, who was too interested in the family business to pay any attention to her. Maybe once or twice from Winter, but only on the very rarest of occasions. And her mother? Willow Schnee was more interested in drinking herself into a stupor than spending time with her daughters, let alone telling them that she was proud of them.

Now here was Cindy, a woman she hadn’t even met before yesterday, telling her how proud she was of her. This housewife was acting more like her mother than Willow Schnee ever had… and it felt good.

If her mother had been like Cindy, would she have had a happier childhood? A happier family? Weiss shied away from answering that, because everything in this house told her the answer was _yes_.

Unbidden, a soft smile graced her face as she continued to prepare food alongside her friend and under Cindy’s patient instruction. No, housework wasn’t beneath her at all, it felt like exactly what she was meant to be doing.

*

Meanwhile, while Weiss was being introduced to the wonders of housework, Blake and Yang were in the garden getting the washing in from the line.

Their huntress outfits had dried quickly beneath the Pleasantville sunshine, so all they had to do was fold them up and put them in the basket. As they worked, they occasionally glanced around, and across the street there were several housewives pegging out or bringing in washing in their own perfect gardens behind white picket fences. These women, all as beautiful as the last, glanced back at Blake and Yang, and waved cheerfully. After all, both huntresses were dressed just like them, in their eyes they were fellow Pleasantville women (wives or daughters of marriable age) going through their own household chores.

The blonde bombshell and ebony-haired beauty worked together silently at first, both of them unconsciously luxuriating in the peaceful atmosphere of the garden. But no silence, however peaceful, could last forever.

“Yang,” said Blake haltingly, “don’t you think this is all a little strange?”

“Hmm?” said Yang as she carefully folded her jacket and put in the basket, “what d’you mean, what’s strange?”

“Pleasantville. It’s all too… perfect. Too perfect to exist.”

Yang cocked her head in thought. “You think this place is too good to be true?”

“Well, yeah. No Grimm attacks, a thriving town, and _every single_ man and woman we’ve met so far look, for lack of a better word, gorgeous. It doesn’t make sense.”

“Yeah… gorgeous.” Mumbled Yang, a vision of Kane flashing through her mind.

“Yang, are you listening to me?”

That snapped the blonde out of her daze. “What? Of course I am. I get what you’re saying, Blake. It’s just… can’t there be at least _one_ place in the world that really is as good as it says it is? I admit that their way of thinking here would be a little… old fashioned back home, but what’s a few quirks here and there?”

Blake frowned at her friend’s denial. “Well… what about what you told me last night? Yang, you said you struggled to move furniture around while helping Abel. I’ve seen you punch Grimm through trees, how is it possible that moving a cabinet or two tired you out?”

That finally got Yang to frown. “I… I hadn’t actually thought about that before. I mean, I wasn’t using my Aura to enhance my strength, only relying on my guns,” she punctuated that statement by pumping her biceps, but in such a feminine dress it looked a bit silly, “but that still should have been enough.”

The cat Faunus jumped at Yang’s hesitation. “See? There’s something not quite right about this place.”

“Maybe… but I still think you’re being too negative about this place.” Yang didn’t engage in the conversation much after that, her own thoughts swirling about in her head as she carried the basked of dried clothing back into the house. Maybe Blake was right. She was a strong woman, moving some furniture about should have been _easy_.

_But it wasn’t easy. Your little arms were nothing compared to Abel’s muscles… and Kane’s are even bigger. Maybe you_ could _move that furniture, but maybe you wanted a_ big, strong, man _to do it for you. Someone like Kane._

Without knowing she was doing it; Yang bit her lower lip at the thought.

*

With lunch eaten and the laundry dealt with, it was time for the girls to have some fun. True to their earlier promise Team RWBY were visiting another one of the suburban town’s attractions, the Pleasantville Fitness and Leisure Centre, to attend a ballet lesson. Cindy vowed it would be an enjoyable time, and the huntresses-in-training had learned to trust the housewife’s judgement on such things.

The girls had initially wanted to change back into their normal outfits, but decided against it. Their huntress gear had yet to be ironed yet, and they would have all felt a bit stupid to wear creased clothes in a town where every woman looks like she just walked out of a beauty parlour. Besides, the longer they wore their new dresses, the more comfortable they felt in them.

The Pleasantville Fitness and Leisure Centre was a large building not far away from the Market. Just like every other building they had seen so far, it fit Pleasantville’s vision of domestic suburbia to a tee. Though while it looked somewhat rustic for an exercise centre, Cindy promised that the interior and classes were professional. Indeed, they would have gone inside already if they weren’t waiting for Emerald to join them.

Then, as if the universe realised they were waiting for someone, Emerald arrived and re-joined the group. She rushed over to them, her face flushed, panting slightly at the exertion of walking quickly in heels. There were a few stray green hairs that had escaped her perfectly cut bob, and her long skirt was ever so slightly rumpled. This was memorable to the girls as it was the first time any of the huntresses-in-training had seen a woman from Pleasantville that looked anything less than perfectly done up. Despite this however, Emerald positively _glowed_ , and a small smile lifted the corners of her mouth.

“Sorry for being late girls. But after Mercury came back from his morning shift and had lunch, he was feeling a little… frisky. I simply couldn’t leave until he was as happy as I am!”

Cindy giggled. “Oh Emerald, you minx!”

It took a split-second for what Emerald meant to sink in, but then every member of Team RWBY flushed scarlet when they realised just what the mocha-skinned housewife was talking about. At one point or another each of the girls considered making a comment of their own, but thought better of it.

Although this talk of Mercury coming back from his shift sparked a thought in Ruby. “So if Mr Black came back for lunch, why didn’t Abel?”

Cindy pouted, “Abel’s had orders to fully furnish some new homes, so he’ll be working until dinner time,” she perked up at that, “I packed him a lunchbox when he left this morning though, so he’s still well fed! Plus, some of the remaining salad you helped me make will go into his sandwich tomorrow.”

“Oh cool, I just wondered where he was all this time.” Said Ruby.

With that question answered, it was finally time to enter the fitness centre and see what all the fuss was about.

The entrance lobby was a large wood-panelled room. In the centre of the room was a circular desk, with two secretaries sitting on either side. On the left side was a man, on the right was a woman. Judging by their matching plaid outfits and wedding rings the two were husband and wife.

Seeing as all of the newcomers were women, the female secretary spoke up. “Oh hello Cindy, Emerald! Are you here for the pre-natal exercise class?”

“That we are!” said Cindy, before gesturing to the huntresses-in-training, “and these fine girls are looking to try out the ballet class.”

The secretary beamed and turned to face Team RWBY, “Lovely! Just sign your names on the ledger dearies and go down the hall on the right. The first room is the changing room and the ballet class is two doors down from that. Don’t worry, all the rooms are clearly labelled, and there’s a board with all the classes we have available on the wall.”

Dutifully all the girls sign the proffered ledger and glanced at the board the secretary mentioned. True enough, ballet was in room 3, though there were plenty of other classes as well. Gymnastics, yoga, cooking tutorials, baking tutorials, sewing, knitting, prenatal exercise (a class for each three stages of pregnancy), and many other classes of a traditionally feminine nature.

Out of interest, Yang took a look in the opposite direction towards the hall on the left. As she half-suspected, there was another board with classes of a different nature. Weight lifting, wood working, construction, basic electronics, self-defence classes, further education classes. The subjects they were teaching in the other hall were quite clearly traditionally male subjects, and while Yang was interested in some of the classes the board mentioned, she had the distinct feeling she wouldn’t be welcome. Perhaps Blake was onto something after all…

Before any further musings could be had, Weiss piped up. “Let’s get into those changing rooms already. I haven’t done ballet since I was a little girl and I’m actually looking forward to this.”

Blake shrugged. “I admit I always wanted to try it at least once.”

*

Changing from traditional dresses into leotards would probably always be an interesting experience. It was a strange feeling, the dresses gave a sense of belonging and security, a feeling of comfort that was almost addictive. But as the dresses were slipped off and the skin-tight leotards were rolled on, another feeling took its place. Rather than feeling exposed or immodest, the members of Team RWBY felt _liberated_.

Cindy noticed her guests’ enthusiasm with her almost ever-present smile. “I see you’re already getting used to wearing those. That’s lovely, nothing is more freeing to wear than these.”

It was then that the girls noticed that Cindy and Emerald were wearing their own leotards. Crimson-red for Cindy and dark-green for Emerald. These were a little more conservative than the ones being worn by the huntresses-in-training, but not by very much. They had stockings that covered the entirety of their legs unlike the girls but their arms were still bare. Plus, their own leotards were just as skin-tight. It revealed the full shape of their bodies, and for the first time showed off just how much more ‘mature’ they were compared to Team RWBY. Of the four girls, Yang and Blake were the most developed, but they paled in comparison to Cindy and Emerald. The two housewives’ breasts, already swelling from early pregnancy, were at _least_ a cup size or two above Yang’s and their hips were the very definition of ‘child bearing’. Of course, the most obvious difference was their first-trimester pregnancies. Their dresses, while tight, were still rather conservative and hid the exact extent of their pregnancy. However, thanks to the leotards the two ladies could bare their bellies proudly, and it was clear now that the two housewives were at least 2-3 months along.

It was yet another strange feeling in a day of strange feelings. But to Ruby especially, the sight of these two pregnant women, both of whom had quickly become rapid friends to the huntress team leader, filled her with a yearning for something that she couldn’t quite understand. She glanced over to her teammates, and judging from the varying degrees of conflict on their faces they were experiencing the same thing.

Seemingly oblivious to this, Emerald smiled, “Shall we go?”

*

With Cindy and Emerald gone to their own exercise class, the girls of Team RWBY quickly shuttled themselves to the ballet class. Judging from the lack of people in the changing rooms they were probably the last to arrive, and it would be embarrassing to arrive in the middle of the lesson. Indeed, they were moving so quickly none of the girls, not even Blake, realised that this was the first time Cindy had left them alone since they met her.

As they entered the ballet room, they immediately took stock of their surroundings. The room was very much like a traditional dance studio. With polished wooden flooring and a wall entirely comprised of mirrors and a balance beam. As the girls suspected, a gaggle of young women were already in the room, around ten or so, dressed in the same form fitting clothing as them. Most of them were chatting together as a group, though one or two more serious minded individuals were already going through their stretches for the lesson. About two thirds of the group had wedding bands on their fingers. However, as soon as the door behind them closed, every woman in the room turned to their heads to face the sound. At the sight of the new arrives, all of the gathered young women gave them smiles eerily similar to Cindy’s.

A girl with mousy brown hair at the head of the group was the first to greet them. “Well hi there! You must be the out-of-towners we’ve all heard so much about. Come join us!”

Never let it be said that the people of Pleasantville weren’t welcoming. Within moments of entering the room as total strangers, the huntresses-in-training were quickly brought into the group. They had just enough time to introduce themselves, before being plunged into the whirlpool that was Pleasantville gossip.

“Casey Brown finally got the nerve to propose to Cassidy. Look at that rock on the engagement ring!”

“Mrs Delilah’s café is serving strawberry-rhubarb pie tomorrow, you just _have_ to try a slice while you’re in town.”

“We’ve decided to start trying for children!”

“Your hair looks amazing! How did you get it to look like that?”

That last one was addressed to a flattered Yang, who was about to answer when another woman walked in and all chatter stopped.

She was a stern looking woman, who was likely somewhere in her late fifties to early sixties, whose steel-grey hair was done up in a bun. This was clearly the dance instructor. Oddly enough to the girls it was like looking at a much older Glynda Goodwitch. The instructor swept her gaze over her students for the day, her eyes lingering on the four huntresses-in-training, before clapping her hands loudly.

“Good afternoon girls.”

The entire group except Team RWBY chanted in unison as if they were back in school, “Good afternoon Mrs Sedet.”

The newly named Mrs Sedet continued to speak. “Welcome to today’s workshop. I see we have some new faces today. You four must be the out-of-towners I have heard so much about.”

Blake frowned. That was the second time in just a few minutes that she had heard that everyone in town had heard about them already. From what she’s seen Pleasantville wasn’t exactly a small town either, did news always travel so quickly here?

Mrs Sedet’s gaze swept over the four huntresses once more, assessing them. She must have seen something she liked as she offered them the smallest of smiles. “I can see the four of you are fit and strong. I don’t think you will have much trouble keeping up. Still, I think we should go over the basics for today.” She clapped her hand again, “Ladies, to the bar. Newcomers, go to the back of the group so you can follow their movements.”

All of the women in the room scurried to the long wooden bar pinned to the mirrored wall, with the huntress team following suit. Weiss in particular looked particularly happy, it was like reliving a piece of her childhood, a simpler time, before huntress training.

The next hour was surprisingly gruelling. With one hand resting on the wooden beam for balance, the four huntresses-in-training followed the movements of the other girls as best as they could. Their training from Beacon helped quite a bit, but they were still doing moves they had never practiced before. From bending their legs almost double while remaining standing to raising a leg over their head. More than once Mrs Sedet physically corrected their positioning, all the while instructing them to follow what every other girl was doing. As soon as the girls could match a move exactly as everyone else could do it, the normally stern instructor gave rare praise, which only pleased the girls more. The more they conformed, the more praise they received, the happier they became.

By the end of the lesson the girls had become virtually synchronised with the entire class. It was honestly as good of a workout as any they had had at Beacon short of actually fighting Grimm, and no one actually enjoys _that_. Yang in particular gained more respect for the women of Pleasantville. She had thought that since they didn’t do much physical work, they were weak, but today’s class put that to rest. They may not do any heavy lifting, but anyone who can lift their leg up that high and keep it there for such a long period of time deserves respect.

As they towelled away the sweat they had worked up from the ballet lesson Ruby spoke up to her friends. “That was really great!”

Blake nodded. “I honestly enjoyed myself.”

“I agree,” said Yang, “honestly some of these girls could teach _us_ a thing or two about being flexible.”

The normally reserved Weiss broke out into a cheerful Pleasantville smile. “It was wonderful! Just like how I remembered as a little girl. I can’t wait to do it again tomorrow.”

“Yeah, or maybe we could try out one of the other classes, like yoga.” Said Yang.

Ruby was nodding her head enthusiastically, but then stopped as a realisation struck her. “But… we’re going to be leaving tomorrow. We won’t be able to go.”

The girls were quiet at that, Weiss in particular looked crestfallen at the news. Though Blake stepped in to reassure her friends. “It’s a shame, but I’m sure we can find classes in Beacon or in the city if we wanted to do it again.”

“I guess you’re right.” Said Weiss, but an unspoken thought hung over the group.

_They won’t be as fun as the classes here in Pleasantville._

*

It had been a fun day. The girls of Team RWBY, who initially came to Pleasantville to search Grimm destroyed ruins had instead been treated like honoured guests. They had been well fed and sheltered. They had been entertained with a shopping spree at the boutique, had tea with the Mayor himself, and had even gotten in a good workout at their Leisure centre for no cost, as if they were native residents. So far, not even the naturally suspicious Blake could complain about the town’s welcoming nature.

But Ruby, Weiss, Blake and Yang were all good people. They weren’t ones to just take someone’s hospitality and not give back. So, now that they had showered, changed, and returned to the Alderwood home, it was time to do just that. The Men would be coming home from work soon, they’ll be expecting dinner.

*

For the third time that day, the girls (save Emerald, who returned to her own home) were all back in the Alderwood kitchen. Something that Yang just had to comment on.

“You know, we’ve probably been in this room more often than any other place in the house, ‘cept maybe the guest bedroom.”

Cindy smiled sweetly in reply. “Of course you have! Didn’t I tell you that the kitchen is where the _real_ fun happens?” She tossed her ash-dark hair over her shoulder and gave half of Team RWBY a knowing smirk, “I know for a fact that two of you have enjoyed yourselves.”

She said this indicating Ruby and Weiss. Ruby was already practically vibrating with excitement, and even the normally stiff Schnee heiress looked contented. Blake, for her part looked a little concerned at how cheerful her two friends were acting, it was only a kitchen for crying out loud. Yang remained nonplussed, Ruby could get excited over anything after all, and Weiss could use having that stick up her butt loosened a bit.

Whatever further ruminations they had were interrupted when Cindy clapped her hands together. “Right girls, speaking of fun, let’s get to work! We’ll be making dinner for seven people, us, Abel and _Kane_.”

The housewife stressed that last name while giving Yang a teasing wink, causing the blonde to blush. She quickly fought down the rising heat to her face while shaking her head as if to clear cobwebs out of her thoughts. What was going on with her? She wasn’t the type to blush like a schoolgirl when thinking about a… big… strong, Man.

Appearing to not notice Yang’s flushed state, Cindy carries on. “We’ll all be working on something. Ruby, Weiss, since you did so well with the salad, please help me prepare the vegetables. Blake, Ruby told me you were good with those sword thingies of yours, so I’ll think you’ll be a dab hand with peeling the potatoes, oh and the cooking apples too! While that’s going on, I could use someone to help me prepare the pastry for the pie we’ll be having for dessert. Yang? Why don’t you help me with that?”

“Uh, sure.” Said Yang. Saying no to Cindy be like kicking a puppy.

“But don’t you worry girls, I won’t be pushing all the work on you! I’ll be preparing the pork roast and gravy.”

Ruby shot up her hand as if she was a student at school. “Can we watch you when you do that?”

Cindy offered Ruby a motherly smile. “Of course you can sweety! Now, everyone put on your aprons, we wouldn’t want to stain your new dresses, would we?”

Already becoming accustomed to doing what Cindy told them, the girls picked up the aprons that Cindy provided them. _She only used to have one for herself and a spare, where did she suddenly get five from?_ And got to work.

Ruby was always fast even without using her Semblance. She began slicing vegetables like no tomorrow, determined to impress Cindy. Weiss’ competitive spirit was ignited by Ruby’s fervour and she too began to work hard on the vegetables.

Far less enthusiastic was Blake, who sedately began peeling potatoes. She hadn’t done anything like this for quite a while. Not since she left Menagerie to fight with the White Fang full time. Idly, she cast her mind back to those early days, when she was just a little girl. Kali Belladonna made just the _best_ fish dishes. She would be sitting with dad at the dining table when her mother would bring out whatever culinary delight she had come up with for the day. Her mother would blush when dad _always_ said it was the best dinner yet, and they would all dig in as a family. She would ask mom if she could help next time ( _did she ever do that? That didn’t sound right…)_ And mom would smile and say ‘next time dear’. But she left before ‘next time’ ever came.

Those times around the dinner table were some of the happiest memories she had. If Blake had stayed on Menagerie, her mother would have certainly taught her how to cook like she did by now. Would _she_ have been bringing out her own amazing dishes, and would dad have playfully joked about how mom had competition? Would she have a boyfriend or _husband_ who would be doing the complimenting instead? Maybe, probably. So many years wasted ( _being a huntress)_ in not seeing her parents…

She glanced down at the food she was preparing, and a small smile spread across her face. A few wasted years, but perhaps she can pick up where the little girl had left off. She suddenly began working with more vigour. She heard Ruby and Weiss humming a little tune as they worked, and she couldn’t help but join in. Synchronising… harmonising…

Yang, meanwhile, was having both the hardest and the easiest time. Hardest, because she had never made pie crust before. Easiest, because Cindy was right next to her, teaching her every step of the way while she prepared for her own cooking tasks. She was honestly grateful for the apron too, as the butter and flour needed for the pie crust would have been murder to get out of this dress. She really didn’t know if this was going to turn out right. Wistfully, she thought back to her step-mom, Summer Rose. She remembered as a very little girl helping her bake cookies while Ruby was still in her crib. Would she have learnt how to bake a pie if from her if she still lived? If she had, then she wouldn’t have to worry about ruining this and disappointing her host.

The blonde brawler honestly wanted to complain a bit, but the calming atmosphere of the house caused it to come out as a barely audible sigh instead.

“Uh, I’m happy to help Cindy, but it kind of feels like you’ve given me the hardest job. Is there a reason I’m helping with this? ‘Cause I don’t want to ruin whatever you’re trying to bake.”

Cindy tutted. “Nonsense. You’re doing wonderfully Yang. The reason I’ve asked for your help here is simple. Apple pie is one of Abel and _Kane’s_ favourite deserts.”

Once again, as soon as Cindy dropped the name of the beefy carpenter Yang felt her heart flutter. “O-oh, really?”

The barefoot and pregnant housewife gave Yang a conspiratorial look. “Really. Since my brother-in-law was coming for dinner, I wanted to make sure he had a good time. And telling him that the pretty blonde he bumped into today helped make his favourite dessert would be such a lovely surprise.”

“Yeah, that does sound just swell.” Said Yang absentmindedly. Suddenly, making this pie crust became less of a chore and more of a task that just _had_ to be done perfectly. As she redoubled her efforts, Yang asked the housewife another question shyly.

“Um, does Kane have any other favourites?”

Cindy beamed. “He enjoys a good dollop of mash potatoes! That’s what we’re going to be making with the potatoes Blake is peeling actually.”

“Can… can I help make that too, when I’m done helping with the pie?”

If possible, Cindy’s smile became even wider. “Of course you can dear. In fact, I was going to ask if you could do just that.”

The smile Yang sported after hearing that was eerily similar to Cindy’s own.

Now that all four huntresses-in-training had discovered a passion for the kitchen, work proceeded very quickly. Vegetables were prepared, potatoes were ready mashed, the pie crust was ready and the apples were about to be stewed. All that was left was the meat, the centrepiece of the meal.

The girls once again gathered, hands clasped in front of them, standing ramrod straight as obedient little students, while Cindy began to lecture them on the best way to roast pork.

Cindy took in her guests/students with a proud look in her eye. “Don’t worry girls, I’ll show you just how this is done.”

And the huntress team listened in rapt attention. Because right now, they weren’t hearing the voice of Cindy Alderwood. They were hearing the voice of Summer Rose, or Willow Schnee, or Kali Belladonna. All four girls while working in this kitchen had felt the absence of their mother’s presence at one time or another. But here was Cindy, teaching them, guiding them in ways their mothers couldn’t, or wouldn’t, do. Right now, in this moment, they would have listened to anything she said…

*

“Honey I’m home!”

Those words, spoken in such a deep tone, immediately had Cindy racing from the sitting room where she had been chatting amiably with the girls to the front hall. Even without Cindy’s reaction, there was not doubt to the girls of Team RWBY who had just come home from work. Feeling it would be rude to just be sitting here and not greet the Man of the House, the girls quickly followed.

They arrived just in time to see Cindy go on tiptoe to kiss her husband passionately, obviously uncaring of her audience. They stayed there, embracing for so long that Blake began to wonder if Cindy would pass out from lack of oxygen. But finally, they broke their embrace, Cindy panting and flushed, still wrapping her arms around her husband.

Abel smiled down at his wife. “There, there dear. It’s only been half a day.”

“It felt like _months_.” Said Cindy in reply.

“And I’m here too.” Said Kane dryly from just behind his brother.

Cindy untangled herself from her husband to put her hands on her hips. “These lips will only ever kiss one Man mister.”

Kane chuckled. “I would never dream of that, sister-in-law. But save some of that cheerful energy for me next time, alright?”

While the in-laws playfully bickered, Abel turned to face his guests. “Hello there, girls. It’s been a little while. Have you been enjoying your day here in Pleasantville?”

“Oh, very much, sir.” Said Ruby cheerfully.

“We helped make dinner.” Said Weiss quickly.

“All of us, this time.” Added Yang just as quickly.

An expression of pleasant surprise flickered over Abel’s face. “Really? Well I didn’t believe it was possible but now I’m even hungrier.”

*

The clock had chimed six. Like almost every other household in Pleasantville, it was time for dinner. The housewife and Team RWBY were all sat at the dining table, with the addition of Kane, who was slyly seated next to Yang by Cindy. The only one standing was Abel who, as Man of the House, was currently carving the pork roast and distributing it among his guests and family. The dinner was set out in a buffet style, with dishes of carrots, peas, broccoli, mash potatoes and stuffing balls were in the middle of the table, so anyone to help themselves to as much as they wanted. Not to mention the boats of gravy. It was a salivating sight, and it was all the girls could do not to fight over who piled their plates first. They had all helped make it this time, so they all knew just how good it was. But order was maintained, and everyone was served in time. Soon everyone was tucking in with gusto.

As he was helping himself to another big dollop of mash potatoes, Kane couldn’t help but remark. “Darn, Cindy, you’ve always been a stellar cook, but these potatoes are the best they’ve ever been.”

Cindy giggled. “As much as I would like to take all the credit, Yang here helped me with the mash. You should be thanking her.”

Kane turned to face his seating partner, who tried and failed to fight down another blush, and smiled. “Well then, thank you Miss Yang. I’ll say it again, these are the best mash potatoes I’ve ever had.”

Yang knew for a fact that she was a Grimm slaying badass, but as soon as Kane praised her cooking, she felt something inside herself melt in a girlish pile of delight. Realising he was still waiting for a reply the normally bold blonde managed to stammer out a response. “Y-you’re welcome, big guy.”

Seeing her bashfulness, Kane’s smile grew a little wider. “Say. I know you’ll be heading home tomorrow, but I’d love to spend some time with you before you go. Whad’ya say?”

_Spend time with you._ Those words rocketed through Yang’s mind… along with the sudden realisation that right now there was nothing that she’d want more. Normally she would refuse, as they were all leaving tomorrow _so they were told,_ but the domestic atmosphere of the Alderwood home was so comforting. What would it hurt to spend an hour or so with Kane before she left?

“I’d like that.” Said Yang, not noticing (or ignoring) the expressions on her teammates faces.

All of her teammates couldn’t help but hear the exchange. Weiss was mostly indifferent, albeit she raised an eyebrow, and Ruby was happy that her sister had made a friend, but Blake was more concerned. Yang could be a little bit of a flirt sometimes, but something told the Faunus that this was different. Her friend wasn’t the type to fall over herself over a guy, but here she was, giving the burly man cow eyes. Something about all this didn’t feel right…

Ah well, it didn’t matter. They were all going home tomorrow anyway, and they could put this place behind them once and for all.

Any further musings were cut short when Cindy addressed the room. “I’m glad you’re all enjoying yourselves but it isn’t over yet. We’ve got apple pie for dessert!”

At those words, there were cheers all around.

*

The sun had long since set on another wonderful day in Pleasantville. Food was eaten, dishes were washed and merriment was had. But now it was time for bed.

The girls wore the same skimpy nighties they had worn last night, and were all genuinely tired. It had been a full day of shopping, chatting with the mayor, making lunch, ballet, cooking dinner, and of course, meeting new friends. But all days end, and sleep is that is left. As they settled into the somewhat cramped, but comfortable, guest beds. The dreaming began…

*

Softly humming to herself, Ruby Ashford pulled out an apple pie freshly baked from the oven. She was older now, a fully matured woman with her own home. As she placed the pie tin on the windowsill to cool, she sighed in contentment and marvelled at how wonderful her newly refurbished kitchen was. Why, it was even better than Cindy Alderwood’s who lived a few streets away. After all, the wife of the Mayor just had to have the best kitchen in town!

“Mama! Mama!”

Ruby spun around and smiled in complete joy as her two perfect little children ran into the kitchen. Her little boy looking so smart and turned out in his dungarees, and her little girl looked just like an angel in her cute pink dress. Smoothing down the skirts of her red and black polka dot dress, Ruby bent down at the waist, palms on her knees, so she could get a better look at her darling children.

“What is it sweethearts?” The sugary tone in her more mature voice was so much like Cindy’s.

“Can we have some pie now?” said her son _his name is Johnathan._

“Please?” said her little girl _her name is Summer. You always wanted to name your first daughter Summer, remember?_

“Oh mommy’s sorry, but it’s only just been pulled out of the oven, wait for it to cool a little first okay?”

The twin ‘awws’ from her cute little children caused something inside Ruby to melt.

Suddenly, her beloved husband, Martin Ashford walked into the room. He wore a perfectly tailored three-piece suit, as always. You had to look sharp when you were the Mayor! While she was still bent at the waist, her husband gave Ruby’s ass a playful spank across the rear, causing her to yelp in surprise, and arousal.

“Listen to your mother,” said Martin, his deep masculine voice causing Ruby to feel weak in the knees.

Mrs Ashford straightened up and went on tip toes and kissed husband on the cheek lovingly. “It’s so wonderful to have you home, honey. Dinner will be ready in an hour.”

*

Wiping off the last speck of dust from her mantlepiece, Weiss’s eyes swept over the room with pride. It was the best decorated home in all of Pleasantville! It even won the competition for ‘best decorated’. Oh, the other housewives had pouted, but congratulated her all the same. Better luck next year! Indeed, her husband _don’t worry you’ll remember his name very soon._ had even given her a pat on the head when she showed him the first-place ribbon she had won. Weiss wondered if he would like the steak or the lamb for dinner…

But she was wool gathering, she had a guest! Winter Schnee, her beloved older sister sat with her legs crossed in her second-finest chair (the best belonged to the Man of the house). She sipped a cup of tea elegantly, then set the cup and saucer back on the side-table. She looked up at Weiss with pride and even a faint trace of envy.

“Weiss, I’ve been too hard on you. I pushed you hard as a child so you could grow up to be a strong Huntress, or to join the Atlas military like me. But I was wrong. Now that I’ve seen how happy you are here; I just _know_ this was always what you were meant to be. A proper Pleasantville wife and mother. I’m ashamed that my younger sister got married before me.”

Weiss beamed. “Don’t worry dear sister, I’m sure you’ll find a great man here if you stay in Pleasantville long enough.”

“Honey I’m home!”

Weiss gasped in delight at the sound of that manly voice. Her Husband was home! All was right in the world.

*

Yang Alderwood was making sandwiches in her new kitchen, while wearing a lovely yellow dress her dear Kane bought for her just last week, with an apron to keep it clean of course! She was tapping her bare foot to the sound of the Pleasantville radio station at it played all the best hits from Vale. She was glad to hear that the more ‘modern’ tracks from the capital had been banned recently. They were just too silly to listen to.

Finished buttering all the bread she needed for her beloved husband and son’s sandwiches, Yang grabbed the jam jar and tried to open it. She gasped and strained, but the darn jar lid just wouldn’t come off. Sighing, she called out.

“Honey, could you help me?”

Kane Alderwood, her beloved husband, stepped into the kitchen. His usual cheerful grin spreading across his face as he drank in his wife’s gorgeous form. “What’s wrong dear?” _Isn’t he dreamy?_

She proffered the jam jar to him with a pout.

Needing no other explanation, her hunk of a husband took the jar gently in his large hands and popped the lid off with ease. The sight Kane’s rippling muscles as easily did something she couldn’t had Yang all hot and bothered.

Kane noticed immediately. “Forget the sandwiches.” He easily scooped her up and carried her bridal style in his large arms.

“Honey! What about our boy?” _His name is Apollo, don’t you remember?_

“He’s not going to starve; he’s just going to get his sandwich a little later. Say, twenty or thirty minutes or so?”

She giggled and let her Man carry her upstairs.

With almost terrifying ease, he gently tossed his unresisting wife onto their shared bed, stripping off his shirt as he did so.

“I think it’s high time we had another kid, don’t you agree?”

“Oh yes dear! Whatever you say.” Said Yang breathlessly.

*

Blake lay on the couch, nursing her pregnant belly. It wouldn’t be long now, just another few weeks and she’ll be a proud Pleasantville mother. Of course, as happy as this made her, by this late stage of pregnancy she isn’t able to do very much now. Indeed, the only dark spot during this joyous time was the fact that she wasn’t able to clean her hubby’s home to her normal perfect standards. Still, her generous and loving husband _silly goose, you’ll remember his name soon_ didn’t mind and forgave her for it considering her condition.

She stroked her gravid belly lovingly as she felt one of her babies kick while in the womb. Yes, one of them. She was carrying triplets! The urban legend of Faunus carrying litters of children was exactly that, but knowing she was carrying _three_ bundles of joy swelled her heart with happiness, and she very much knew it turned her husband on. _Must be pregnancy jitters, you’ll remember his name soon._

She had already decided that two of the children will be named after her parents. The third, well she’ll let her Man decide, he was already being gracious enough to let her name two of them after all.

He would be home from work soon! Dinner’s already been set up, thanks to a little help from her friends, but she couldn’t fully serve him like she usually would. Well Blake was sure he wouldn’t mind a blowjob…

_This isn’t right…_

“Honey, I’m home!”

The sound of that deep masculine voice swept Blake out of her _silly_ thoughts.

She gasped in joy. “Darling! I’m in here.”

Her husband was home. There was no need to wake. Everything was right with the world. As it always should be. As it always _would_ be.

After all, this is Pleasantville.


End file.
